Into the Darkness
by Harold Genhi
Summary: An after story of the challenges that faces Commander Shepard after he severs his ties with Cerberus. The galaxy is still in danger, and an enemy that the Galaxy has never seen, or at least acknowledges to have never seen, is hiding in the darkness.
1. Chapter 1: Lights Dim

The suicide mission echoed from the past, a victory for the galaxy. The collectors had been silenced and the human colonies gained their sense of security back. This brought a relieved smile stretching across Commander Shepard's face as he stretched out on his bed; Tali laying next to him. Shepard glanced down at her arm that hung over his chest and followed it to her body. He watched her breath softly causing her shoulders to rise and fall slowly. In a sense, the battle felt over, victory had been achieved, but sadly, memories returned. The Reapers stood at the threshold of the galaxy, and he didn't just have to assemble a simple team to win this war, he had to assemble the galaxy. From data stolen from the collector base before the charges ignited the base into a fiery explosion, he discovered that the Reapers stood five years away from the galaxy. Tali stirred in the bed, shifting her body, and bringing her hand up Shepard's chest, rubbing it softly.

"Shepard?" Tali asked softly while she stretched, "Why are you up? You need to relax"

"There's still a lot of things on my mind, Tali," Shepard mumbled, turning his body so that he faced her. He grasped her hands and laced them in his while he brought his attention to Tali's glimmering eyes and radiant smile; even under that mask, he could see the brilliance of her face.

"Shepard… We need take this opportunity to rest," Tali begged with a hint of concern. "We have time to organize the galaxy against the Reapers…"

"I know… I just don't want to take too long of a vacation," Shepard contested, giving her slight a smile.

Seeing the happiness in his face, Tali gave a tiny chuckle; she enjoyed seeing him happy after he had lost so much.

"You know Shepard," Tali hinted. "I brought the immuno-enhancers and herbal supplements up with me... You know… in case we couldn't rest..."

"Hmm… That seems like an excellent idea Miss vas Normandy. Make it so," Shepard joked with an exaggerated captain's voice. Tali chortled at the voice, and, after giving his hands one last rub, she slid out of the bed and walked over to a case sitting in the corner. Shepard observed her as she strode to her chest. When she opened the case to her small medical lab, the beep of Shepard's door rang into the room.

"Yes? who is it?" Shepard requested as he rose from his bed and walked to the door.

"Shepard. It's Mordin. Need to talk, matter of importance!" rang Mordin's voice from behind the door.

Shepard deactivated the locks on the door and let the fidgety doctor enter. Almost immediately he discovered Tali sitting on the couch in the room.

"I'm not bothering you, am I Shepard?" Mordin beamed.

"No… but you almost did," Shepard sighed, catching a glimpse of Tali's slightly annoyed eyes.

"Glad I didn't intrude. May have been unpleasant or informative. Either or. Still… inappropriate…" Mordin rattled. "Have already talked with Garrus, could potentially be dangerous."

"What is it, Mordin?" Shepard inquired, annoyed at the stalling. Mordin cleared his throat before he began.

"The Human-Reaper emitted a unique radiation, one that has diverse effects among different species. Been running experiments. Found surprising results," Mordin sputtered quickly with excitement. "If you wouldn't mind Shepard, I need you to put your hand on your desk.

Shepard stared at Mordin, a little hesitant of what he intended to do.. Placing his left hand on the desk, John asked, "What is this all abo…" Shepard never finished the question before Mordin drew a knife and thrust it into his hand pinning it to the table. At the moment it smashed into the table, Tali had already jumped to her feet, running towards Mordin.

"What the hell are you doing Mordin!" Tali ranted angrily, pushing him out of the way to provide comfort for Shepard. John pulled the knife out of his hand and pointed it at Mordin.

"What the hell Mordin!" Shepard bellowed.

"Before you kill me, may I ask you a question?" Mordin smiled.

"It better explain why the hell you stabbed me!" Shepard proclaimed, lowering the knife.

"Did you feel anything?" Mordin argued.

"Of course I…" Shepard replayed his memories which showed him that he had jumped from shock and not pain. Shepard stuttered with a loss for words. "No, I gues…"

"Shepard! Look at your hand!" Tali cried, lifting it up. Everyone watched as the hole filled with fibers, patching itself together within seconds.

"Mordin?" Shepard gasped. "What's going on?"

"Miss Tali'Zorah vas Normandy," Mordin resumed, changing his focus on Tali. "Don't be alarmed."

"I didn't think you would just come in here and stab Shep…" Tali stressed, but she was cut off as Mordin unsealed her helmet and pulled her visor off.

"Mordin! No!" Shepard stammered, reaching for Mordin's lean figure.

Tali breathed deeply in panic as she watched Mordin carry the visor away from her.. Tears filled up in her eyes as she felt the air touch her exposed skin. The odds of surviving without any medicine or direct medical attention guaranteed a short life in this state.

"How do you feel?" Mordin questioned, staring with a smile on his face.

Tali took a breath of unsanitary air to yell at Mordin. "You bosh'tet! What have you done? I'm going to die because… of… you…" Tali tapered off as she felt the air easily go down her throat and into her lungs. There was no burning. There was no redness. There was no inflammation. She stood dumbfounded with her face unprotected waiting for the allergic burning, but it never came.

She turned her head to Shepard with tears welling up in her eyes. He stared awestruck at her. The tears ran softly from her glowing eyes, shimmering brilliantly from the glow, illuminating the tears path down her cheeks. John could feel water fill his eyes as a smile slowly cracked on his face. They ran towards each other, Shepard placed his hands on her cheeks, using his thumbs to wipe the tears way while Tali smiled and kept failing at any attempt at talking to him. Mordin remained in the room, observing the range of emotions flashing across Shepard and Tali's shared visage, and feeling quite satisfied with himself, made his way to the door. Before he left the boundary of the room, he turned back to the lovely couple and said one last thing.

"You should go see Garrus."


	2. Chapter 2: Bulb Breaks

These newfound gifts were almost too much to handle as Shepard and Tali still felt themselves touching each other, examining the changes, and laughing with a disbelieving laugh. John turned his attention back to Mordin.

"What happened to Garrus?" Shepard asked.

Mordin simply smiled and left without another word. John and Tali held each other close and kissed each other passionately, her warm wet lips playing across the nerves of his lips like a delicate piano song, delicate and peaceful. Tali gripped his hand and pulled him to the elevator, laughing. He grinned and followed her, but made himself walk slower than he normally would so that she struggled to pull him. She giggled and tugged before they made it to the elevator.

Tali swayed her hips as they danced to the slight rumble of the elevator's engines. Their snuggling quickly evolved into kissing of passionate longing and excitement; their hands slowly explored each other's bodies, rising and falling along their backs and sides. Tali kissed and bit, softly tugging on John's bottom lip before locking her mouth with him again, her heart singing with the greatest happiness she had ever felt in her life. John, too, felt his heart skip beats and jump with joy from the excitement of the situation, an excitement he had not felt in the whole of his life.

Tali hummed a small tune as they broke again, nuzzling their noses together as they passed the CIC. She rested her hands on his sides and felt his hands begin to massage her intimately, slowly down her back and only lightly on her rear. She giggled at his touches and they leaned in slowly for another kiss, Tali's mouth opening in anticipation and her eyes almost closed, but still staring at John's lips to make sure they connected correctly. The warm embrace told her eyes that the mark had been met.

She slowly lowered and raised her leg along her lover's leg, feeling his friction on the inside of her legs; the feelings grew, intimate and strong. She draped her arms around his head and pulled him in close as she buried the top of her head on the side of his head, softly kissing his neck, licking slowly. She stood on her toes and leaned in closer trying to make their bodies touch more in the heat of the excitement, but the elevator doors said otherwise.

Kelly Chambers stared at them awkwardly for a second.

Shepard and Tali didn't say a word as they both squeezed out of the side of the elevator; Tali bit her lip nervously, holding back the giggle that wanted to burn through her. Their footsteps were musical on the metal floor as they walked, Tali walking with more of a spring in her step as she circled in front of John and stopped him snagging his lips again in hers, both of their hearts fluttering like butterflies in an elegant courtship dance.

They hugged each other as they backed themselves along the metal walkway to the forward battery until they arrived at the door. They giggled and teased trying to be quiet to surprise Garrus, but when the door panel stayed shut Shepard's mood adjusted and he hit the switch manually.

Nothing.

He wondered what was up and tried the manual lock again; the orange dim chime of an access denied caused another grunt of dissatisfaction. He punched the button a few times to make sure it wasn't just a faulty code or something before he looked at Tali who smiled slyly and walked to the panel. The orange glow of her Omni-tool filled the dark corner as she rerouted the circuitry and reconfigured the board's electrical grid. The switch turned a brief green as the door slid open.

They were greeted with a dark room, completely cast in a pitch-black void. John squinted his eyes as he tried to adjust his vision to the darkness, but he couldn't see anything. He looked back at Tali who shrugged at him.

"Garrus? Are you there?" John asked in almost a joke of the darkness.

The air quickly grew thick with concern and worry as a powerful force gripped their hearts and they stared at enveloping cold darkness that appeared to creep and claw from the dark room. Before the next words could escape his mouth, four orange lights burst from the darkness.

"Assuming direct control!" A loud and powerful voice bellowed through what felt like the whole ship.

Cracks of bronze light with yellow arching bolts illuminated the darkness in an unwanted light that should not belong. A turian shaped husk, disfigured and formed into a grotesque and misshapen form. Shepard retreated slightly in shock as he reached down for his pistol. The form marched forward and pulled the gun out of John's hands before he could get a strong grip on them.

"You will know pain Shepard…" Instead of focusing on Shepard it turned its attention to Tali standing beside him.

Its arm rose sending a burning ball of caustic energy forth. Shepard jumped in front of the fire and took the blunt of the fiery ball, his chest being blown open leaving a smoldering hole. He fell to the ground trying to breath, but the scorched lungs had nothing left, though they quickly began to repair themselves, but it wasn't repairing fast enough.

He could only watch through his tear filled eyes as he struggled to breath as another fireball shot toward the delicate woman behind him. He heard her screamed before he jumped his body up, his hand hitting the fireball. When his hand fell down in front of his eyes again, he found that it was completely missing from his arm. He breathed hard at the shock and felt his heart panic, yet he felt no pain except for the burning in his lungs. He watched another streak make its way toward Tali he used his other hand and felt his other hand disintegrate, but at the same time he saw another streak that was following it.

His eyes widened, pupils dilated as his senses flared with confusion and panic. He heard the scream burn in his mind as a burning crash and heat pricked at the back of his neck. The screaming stopped instantly as he heard a dull and limp thud hit the ground behind him. He turned to see a large hole burned in the center of his lover's chest, the smoldering remains not repairing like his. He watched the powerful and scorched heart attempt to beat in the open air, hanging by the last few veins slowly cease forever.

Hot tears began to pour from his eyes as he turned back toward the murderer to find it standing right in front of him, its hand pressed against his head. His eyes widened more as he felt the hand fill with heat before everything flashed from the shot fireball.

John was cast into darkness, floating through a free space, devoid of life, devoid of feeling and senses. He floated through the void. Was it death? Was it his body regenerating? Was this what lies after death? The light at the end of the tunnel became quickly apparently, weightlessly floating toward it.

He slowly became aware of tightness around his body. He struggled to move as he quickly realized that he wasn't physically moving through a tunnel, but his eyes had fallen in a tunnel vision that was slowly mending its condition. He slowly focused as the light grew; it quickly showed itself to be a viewport. He looked into whatever he was floating toward, but as the image behind the glass focused into a sharp image he found himself not looking into a room, but out of a pod inside of a room. He struggled with the straps around his body, but they firmly kept him in place.

"What's going on!" He bellowed in the pod. He focused on a large glowing sun display with a chair's shadow in the foreground. He struggled again before a voice abruptly ceased the activity of his muscles.

"Shepard… please don't try to struggle." A pause was followed by a small dot of light falling to the edge of the chair's arm. "We wouldn't want you hurt… before we let you go…"

"Illusive Man… Why do you-" he was interrupted.

"Please… let me get you out of the pod before I you force me to listen to your muffled complaints." He spoke slowly.

The front panel of the pod opened and the machine stretched out the beam that Shepard was strapped to out toward the iconic chair. The blue glow of the Illusive Man's eyes filled the darkness as he put an orange drag on his cigarette.

"Now… why you are here…" He smashed the cigarette into the tray before he gracefully folded his hands and his legs. "I asked you specifically to keep the collector base intact… but to my… annoyance. You decided to blow it up. I think you have forgotten the reason that you were brought back to life." The voice gained in volume and harshness. "You had a simple order and you had to just do that one thing for me, but you shut me out and you disregarded my orders. I let you do your own thing and get to this point and you were to pay me back with that base! Luckily, I managed to find this little gem of technology. I decided to test it on you and it turns that it is an individualized indoctrination chamber… used on the beings that showed a stronger resistance to group indoctrination."

"What do you want from me? Are you going to kill me?" Shepard questioned, his brain finally setting into place and the world stopped spinning around him.

The Illusive Man leaned forward as a crooked smile fractured along his face. "You are going to love this…"


	3. Chapter 3: Light Slowly Returns

It was hard to cope with reality. Shepard never believed that an indoctrination process could be so real feeling. He could still feel the wetness of Tali's tears on his hands, the grip of her hand on his, and the fireball's heat before it hit him. How did he know that he was out of that pod? What if he was just in another? The thoughts clouded his mind and made him to stare blankly out the window of the shuttle. He rubbed his chin, deep in thought. He didn't even realize that the shuttle had docked with the Normandy until the pilot spoke up. He stood up and turned to the door of the shuttle grabbing the handles that were placed on the low ceiling and pulled himself forwards to the door which opened automatically. He had kept the lights on the shuttle dimmed so that he could relax so the initial wave of bright light made him have to focus his eyes.

As his eyes focused, he made out a single person standing at the docking bay for him. She stood there with her hands crumpled, rubbing them nervously together. Upon getting to the bottom of the stairs, she had slowly and uneasily walked up to him and wrapped her arms around him. He could feel that she was struggling for something to say and found himself at a loss for anything to say. The embrace to him felt like enough at this moment.

"Shepard…" Tali said with a sound of being exhausted from crying. "I-I didn't know what to think. I didn't… I… Keelah… I'm just happy that your OK."

Shepard stared at the back of her head. He had to keep reminding himself that all those memories that he had were illusions used by the Illusive Man. He could feel the tears wanting to erupt from his eyes from seeing reality, but he managed to quell them and ease the pain by holding her close.

"I missed you too, Tali," Shepard said lovingly. This caused all the strength that Tali had managed to muster before the meeting to fail and she heaved with a sad gasp. Shepard felt as her body jerked from her crying and he wished that he could look into her face and rub the tears from her cheek, but he couldn't. He could only stand there and rub the back of her head and try to comfort her.

"Shepard… I'm sorry, " Tali said as she took a step back keeping her gaze on the floor. "I shouldn't be acting like this. You don't want me acting like this when you got back. I should be happy that you are here." Tali made a few glances up at Shepard, but she couldn't keep eye contact. Shepard walked forwards and took her hands. He felt her wince slightly from his touch, but she knew it was for the best.

"Tali. There is nothing to be ashamed of for crying. You are happy. Your just relieved that I'm here and it's a bit overwhelming for you. That's all." said Shepard waiting for her to remake eye contact with him. Tali looked up and remade the bond.

"Thank you Shepard," Tali said gratefully. "I thought that I lost you right after we had just found each other, and I… I just… It was just a bit much to think that I…" Her words felt heavy. "…lost you this soon"

"I thought I lost you too" Shepard said as he hugged her closely, and repeated himself in a whisper. "I thought I lost you too."

Shepard met with everyone on the ship again. Each had a hint that the had missed him and that they were worried about him, but none were close to Tali's condition. The two toughest meetings that he made was with Garrus and Mordin. The hallway of hyper-sleep chambers along the metal walkway was still fresh in his head. The sight of the Collector behind the door becoming Harbinger echoed vividly in his head as he heard the echo from his feet stepping on the metal walkway. The door automatically opened with Garrus standing at his computer. He turned slightly and saw that it was Shepard.

"Shepard! Glad to see you survived." Garrus said as he turned back to his computer.

"Hey Garrus. Can we talk?" Shepard asked as Mordin's words 'You should see Garrus' lingered in his mind.

"Ehrm… Can it wait? I'm in the middle of some calibrations" Garrus said. This had to be Garrus, no doubt of that. Shepard smiled as he pushed himself off of the wall and made his way back to the elevator. Miranda stopped him along the way.

"What did the Illusive Man want?" she asked quite straight forwardly.

"How do you know it was the Illusive Man?" asked Shepard, a bit surprised that she knew.

"It's not every day that your commander mysteriously disappears after he just disobeyed the Illusive Man." Miranda said as she folded her arms and put her weight on one leg.

"He wants me to unite the galaxy against the Reapers," Shepard said.

"I think he asked more of you than that Shepard" Miranda said as she cocked her head to one side, giving him a knowing glare.

Shepard thought a moment before he talked. "The Illusive Man wants me to get him something."

"And what, may I ask Shepard, is that?" Miranda asked with a smile.

"He wants me to get him a Reaper ship," Shepard said as he rubbed the bridge of his nose with his two fingers.

"And how are we supposed to do that?" Miranda asked as she shifted her weight to the other side, the smile fading from her face.

"I don't know yet," Shepard said as he took a deep breath in.

"What does he have that could possibly guarantee your cooperation?" Miranda asked.

"Well he made it clear that he can steal me out of my bed without me knowing it, and plug me into a machine that could make me a mindless drone." Shepard said.

"Good luck with coming up with something Shepard, I'll be behind you all the," Miranda said as she turned to return to her room. Shepard watched her walk and the same thing repeated in his mind every time that he saw her. 'That suit cannot be comfortable for her to wear. He felt a bit guilty for where his gaze had drifted, but it wasn't his fault that her suit was too tight. She was still not very nice and still way to formal for his liking. She reminded him too much of Ashley Williams except Miranda's allegiance lies with Cerberus not the Alliance.

Shepard made his way to Mordin, the last stop on his tour. He found him working on some experiments on his lab.

"Shepard. Good to see you. Worried that we lost you. Working on experiments to keep mind off your fate. Quite effective" Mordin said as Shepard entered the room.

"Thanks Mordin" Shepard said with a smile. "Glad to see you found something productive to do."

Yes it has been quite productive. Been working on some new cybernetics requested by Tali. Promising results. Should be done in a couple of weeks. Along with other things." Mordin said not looking up from the object laying in front of him.

"What's the cybernetic for Tali for?" Shepard asked intrigued by this untold experiment.

"Miss Tali'Zorah has told me to not tell you. Told me to tell you to ask her. Though I would wait. Stress from your return is putting her on edge. Best to wait." Mordin said with a smile.

"OK. I'll wait, but thanks for telling me about it." Shepard said as left the lab and returned to the elevator. He pushed in the top floor and waited to get into his familiar bed and relax. He just realized how tired he was. "I guess being in that machine wasn't sleeping" Shepard said to himself.

Shepard opened the door to his cabin. The lights were out except for the lights from his fish tank. Luckily his fish were swimming happily about. Someone had taken care of them. He turned the lights on and found Tali sleeping in his bed. It didn't bother him. He walked over to the other side of the bed and laid down beside her. He draped his hand over her and pressed the button for lights causing the room to descend into darkness. He may have been blind before, but now he knew that what he was holding this time was real, but the idea of the Reapers and the Illusive Man's request, or better defined as a demand, threatened to keep him awake, but the soft rising and falling of Tali breathing under his arm relaxed him that he easily fell asleep.


	4. Chapter 4: Surge

The course had been set for the Hades Gamma Cluster. The engines ran silently and much of the crew were on their sleep cycles. Joker lounged sleepily at the helm as EDI maintained control of the ship. Shepard and Tali slept soundly together, undisturbed and happily in each other's arms. Most of the ship was silently from either lack of crew or from the smooth operation that the ship was experiencing from the pinpoint accuracy of EDI. The mission was, for the most part, a simple investigation of a disturbance among one of the colonies. Though Shepard hoped it was only a simple disturbance, luck never really favored him and he readied himself for something that could his crew at peril. Even in sleep, Shepard weighed the ideas, and he kept the possibility of who he should bring on this mission open in his mind. Joker's voice rang through the intercom hours later.

"Captain! Your not going to like this! We need you down here immediately!" Joker yelled.

Shepard and Tali were out of bed and on the elevator faster than they thought possible. The elevator ride felt slow with the adrenaline pumping through his veins, but he knew that not much time was passing. He glanced at Tali and saw the worried look in her eyes. He too must have had a worried look go through him whenever Tali asked, "This isn't good. Is it Shepard?"

"It can't be if it has Joker this started," Shepard said returning his gaze to the doors of the elevator. The ship lurched sharply to the left sending Shepard and Tali against the right wall. Joker's voice rang through the intercom again.

"Taking evasive maneuvers!" Joker yelled warning the crew of what he was doing.

The elevator opened seconds later. Shepard turned to Tali and held her hand before giving her a nod and letting her proceed to the engineering level. Shepard ran to the helm where Joker was furiously punching in coordinates and sequences of drive controls into the orange drive hologram in front of him. There was a hint of sweat sprinkled on his eyebrows and his eyes were cracked wide open as he read the battle field and made himself the ship.

"Commander! Am I glad to see you!" Joker said finally realizing that Shepard was right beside him. "We are under attack by a Turian Quasar Class Frigate" Joker fell a bit forwards as the ship jolted from being hit by a plasmatic burst. Joker threw up a glance to Shepard. "It's your old friends the Blue Suns Mercenary Group! Want to say hi!?" Joker said sarcastically.

"How are they giving the Normandy so much trouble?" Shepard asked as the ship rocked again from another hit.

"Their ship has been modified somehow!" Joker yelled as his hands worked independent from each other on two different panels. "I can't seem to shake them!" EDI's hologram appeared by Joker.

"Kinetic barriers are at 75% and holding" EDI said.

"They may be hitting us a lot, but they aren't doing much damage to us!" Joker said with a small laugh. "If we can just get around and hit them with something, almost anything it would cripple them!"

"How are they following us!?" Shepard asked.

"They are right on our…" The ship rocked violently again. "… heels commander!"

"Good!" Shepard said as he pushed himself off of Joker's chair and made his way to the engineering deck. Once he got into the elevator he summoned EDI. "EDI, I want you to tell Grunt to push a case of Neutronium Shells to bay doors.

"Yes, Commander," said EDI as she shrank back into the computer.

The doors to the engineering level opened at the same time that the ship lurched violently again causing Shepard to grab hold of the handle directly out of the elevator. He looked through the glass and saw that Grunt and Jack were almost done pushing it to the far side of the bay. He made his way to the control room for the engines where Tali was hard at work punching in calibrations and power reallocation sequences.

"Tali!" the ship lurched again knocking Shepard off balance.

Tali turned with a look of shock. "Shepard! What are you doing here!"

"I need you to stop the ship immediately when I tell you!" Shepard said.

"Aren't we trying to out run them?" Tali asked.

"They're too quick so I have plan, wait for me!" Shepard said as he left the room and returned to the cargo bay window. He pressed the intercom. "I want you to grab that absorbent resonance polymer and stretch it tightly behind the Neutronium Shells! Tie it to something that wont fly around. They stretched it tightly with ease and gave Shepard a look of what they should do next. Shepard smiled as his plan began to come into place. "I want you to hold on for the ride!" Shepard watched as Grunt laughed and Jack smiled as they figured out what they were going to do. Shepard ran back to Tali and tapped her on the shoulder. She flipped all the power off and flipped the ship into a full stop.

Shepard could hear everything in the ship that wasn't tied down slide to one side of the ship. He also yelled through the intercom to Joker.

"Open the cargo bay doors!" Shepard yelled.

"Aye Commander!" yelled Joker with confusion in his voice. The ship rocked violently, but this time it wasn't from being hit, but from a spatial disturbance close by.

"Close the doors Joker! Tali! Start the engines back up! EDI! Tell Grunt and Jack to get back in here!" Shepard yelled happily.

"I don't know what you did Commander, but half of their ship just disintegrated!" Joker said happily. On his way to the elevator he walked past Jack and Grunt. They were both grinning ear to ear with slightly evil looks spread across their faces.

"They never knew what hit them! Hell Ya!" said Jack.

"Nicely done Shepard. Don't ever let me get on your bad side," Grunt said smiling.

Shepard returned to the bridge and walked up to Joker's chair. He had time to look out the window and look at the fiery remains of the Turian Frigate crack with a fusion burst. Joker was right, half of the front of the ship was totally destroyed.

"Any survivors?" Shepard asked.

"A few escape pods left from the engineering decks of the ship," Joker replied, his motions were far more relaxed as he made few heading changes and gravitational compensations.

"Pick them up. I need some answers," Shepard said turning from Joker.

"Aye Comma… Ship is emitting strong gamma ray bursts! It's self destructing!" Joker yelled while his hands picked their momentum up again.

"Get us out of here!" Shepard yelled, but it was too late. The defensive blinds to the helm of the ship closed just as the charred ship in front of them erupted into a supernova of light. The ship felt like it was flung hard into space. The computer decks and many control panels erupted with sparks and some even caught fire. Shepard was tossed to the ground by the force of the explosion. He looked up long enough to see the power of the ship fail and the emergency red lights to flip on. He grabbed the nearby emergency breathing apparatuses and handed one to Joker who was writhing in pain and holding his ribs.

"EDI! Status report!" Shepard yelled. The lights flickered back onto the ship and EDI's voice echoed through the ship.

"Fires on all decks. Life support at 50%. Engineering core directly effected by gamma ray burst. Tali'Zorah is in critical condition." EDI's voice faded from Shepard's mind as the last thing she said echoed in his head. He stood completely still with shock halting his movements.

"Tali! No!" Shepard roared as he ran through the still sparking and burning bridge. He took the access ladders down to the engineering bay because the elevator was still out. The engineering bay was heavily damaged. May of the metal panels had fallen off or were hanging loosely on a single bolt. Shepard pried the door open. At first all he saw was her hand on the ground behind the set of machinery. The sight scared him. His body pumped full of adrenaline as he opened the door open with strength matched only to a Krogan. He ran over to Tali who laid motionless under a metal sheet.

"Tali! Tali!? Wake up! Listen to me! You have to wake up!" Shepard screamed as he tapped her helmet and rocked her body. She turned her head and looked at Shepard with weak eyes.

"Shepard…" She managed to say as she half lifted her hand to him. It fell back down.

"Shhh… Save your strength. Stay with me! Mordin's coming you'll be fine! Just hang in there!" Shepard screamed as tears filled up his eyes. This was only supposed to be an investigation. An investigation! He held Tali's head up and waited for Mordin to come. He was completely helpless and he couldn't do anything as he listened to Tali's raspy breathing. Mordin and Chakwas came in with a stretcher and lifted her onto it.

"You better not die on me! Captain's order." Shepard said trying to make a joke out of it.

Tali tried to laugh, but stopped to cough. He watched as they rounded the corner. He listened as the elevator went up to the medical station. It had been turned onto a faster speed. He could only stand there. Holding his hands in front of him. He could still feel her head in his arms. He could still feel her breathing against him the night before. The soft rising and falling of her body. He closed his eyes remembering those moments as a tear ran down his cheek and he clenched a piece of fabric that was in his hands, a piece of her hood. He wished, even went to ask every god from every race and religion to let her live. To spare her life and giver her strength.


	5. Chapter 5: Recovery

Shepard wasn't allowed sit by Tali's side as she lay in the Intensive Care Chamber. It didn't even look like Tali inside the chamber, but this wad of plaster and bandages. Shepard sat quietly on the other side of the protective glass watching her breath and listening to the beeps of the machines that were keeping her alive. He couldn't bear it sometimes, standing up quickly and putting his hands behind his head as tears filled up in his eyes. Why was he feeling this? He moved on when Kaiden had sacrificed himself on Virmire though it did hit him bad, it did not make him bring him to tears. Chakwas brought Commander Shepard coffee and food while he stayed in the medical wing. Every once in awhile she would put her hand on his shoulder and try to say something, but she couldn't bring herself to say it. She wanted to tell him the extent of her injuries, but the look in Shepard's eyes bore too great a hole on her for her to continue.

Fifteen days pass and there is not much change in Tali, but Shepard has started touring the ship again, trying to escape the sight of her in this state. Most of the crew, like Garrus and Thane, tried to cheer him up and at times he gave them a smile, but then they saw the memory pass over his face covering it with a sheet of despair.

Shepard lost track of time. He passed his time reading all of his old mission reports and codex files, avoiding most of the Quarian reports and subjects. That's when a Chakwas voice rang over the intercom.

"Commander. I think you should come down here," she said in a grieved way.

Shepard tried to avoid that detail and forget about it, but it called out loudly in his head. "She's dead!" "You know she is!" "Did you hear her voice? There's no chance she could live!" "She would have had a chance if she was human, but she's quarian, there's no way!" Shepard tried to push these thoughts out of his head.

The elevator ride down was excruciating. His mind burned with the worst possible outcome, but he maintained a strong composure about himself. He walked into the Medical Bay and to his surprise a lump of plaster and bandages was sitting up in bed. He didn't know if he ran or flew to the microphone on the side of the chamber.

"Tali! Tali… I was so worried about you!" Shepard said trying to hid the quiver in his voice.

Tali's voice was almost a whisper and still very weak. "Shepard… Where am I?" Tali asked taking in big breaths of air.

"Your in the Medical Bay. I need you to relax so you will get better," Shepard said smiling weakly.

Tali tried to lift her hands to her head, but decided against it when she was halfway there. She shook her head slowly. "What… happened?"

"There was an explosion. Do you remember? I told you not to die on me. Captain's orders," Shepard said trying to bring the old joke back.

Tali made an attempt at a small giggle, but that hurt her lungs to much causing her to cough weakly. "I remember, Shepard," Tali said after she cleared her lungs. The wheezing that Shepard heard was getting worse.

"I want you to lie down and take it easy for now. OK? You'll be fine." Shepard said lovingly as he placed his hand on the glass.

Tali looked up to see Shepard, and Shepard knew she was smiling or at least trying to smile. He watched as she painfully laid back down. Then he put his attention back on Chakwas.

"What's wrong with her?" Shepard asked.

"I'm sorry Commander, but she was hit with a considerable amount of gamma radiation and the explosion covered her suit in element zero. On top of that, the mass effect field caused burns to her hands and feet, and I…" Chakwas was cut off.

"What is _wrong_ with her?" Shepard asked raising his voice.

"We had to amputate her hand… Her right hand…" Chakwas said with grief in her eyes.

Shepard's eyes filled with tears as he turned to look at the sleeping form before he looked back at Chakwas. "Is there anything we can do?" Shepard asked.

"Not until she is in better condition. Then we can see if Mordin can do anything. You can ask him now, but I don't know," Chakwas said.

"Ok… I think I'll do that," Shepard said while trying to brush the tears out of his eyes. Shepard went to talk to Mordin, hoping for anything.

"Mordin? I need to ask you something," Shepard asked trying to regain his composure.

"Shepard! Already on it. Making a fully functional cybernetic hand for Ms. Tali'Zorah. Better than her other hand. Thinking about this a long time. Glad to do it. Be done when she's better," Mordin said in a cheerful manner.

Shepard was a bit put off by this cheery attitude, but was himself a bit cheery after he heard this. "Thanks Mordin," was all Commander Shepard could say.

It was another six weeks before Tali was out of her bandages and come to realize the absence of her hand which she didn't take too well. Mordin had completed the cybernetic hand and was currently attaching it to her hand. Tali moved the hand around and was impressed that she could feel the hand touch things.

"Placed microscopic sensors all over the polymer. Took a lot of time. Two weeks. Should feel like normal hand, but faster and better with a few bonuses," Mordin said giving Tali a wink.

"You mean you…" Tali started.

"Yes it's all integrated into the hand. Avoids unnecessary surgery. Unnecessary damage to your already fragile form," Mordin said with a smile.

"Thank you Mordin," Tali said.

"Is this about that project that you gave Mordin?" Shepard asked trying to not look at the deep burns running up Tali's right arm.

"I was going to tell you, but you know…" Tali said as she lifted her arm up to look at the burns in the light. "…this happened."

"I understand Tali. I just would like to know if you will tell me now?" Shepard asked from behind his enviro-suit so he wouldn't contaminate Tali's clean room.

She looked up to Shepard as she slid her suit back onto her legs which were still wrapped with anti-thermal bandages. She gave him a small smile before she placed the mask back to her face showing only the glow of her eyes, but Shepard could tell she continued to smile behind the mask.

"I'll tell you when I'm feeling better," Tali said as she got her feet regaining the balance that she hadn't had for over two months. She stumbled back onto her bed and sat there frustrated. "Keelah…" She looked back up to Shepard. "Would you mind helping me get out of this room. I'm getting claustrophobic and bored."

"Only if you promise to tell me," Shepard said with a sly smile.

"You little Bosh'tet," Tali said laughing, "Is this how you treat your injured?"

"Tell me…" Shepard said, seeing that he was cheering her up.

"Fine… But only in your cabin… alone," Tali said looking past Shepard at Chakwas who was looking through the glass at her.

"Of course, Ms. vas Normandy," Shepard said extending his arm.

Tali gripped Shepard's left hand with her new right hand. Shepard felt the added strength and winced slightly. Tali caught this and gave Shepard a look that showed that she smiled under her mask.

"We should arm wrestle sometime, Shepard," Tali said laughingly.

"Haha… We'll see about that," Shepard said as he pulled her to her feet and let her lean on him. They slowly walked out of the room as Tali limped badly even with Shepard's help. "So where am I taking you?" Shepard asked as they exited the Medical Bay.

"I want to go back to engineering. Another day in that room and I was going to crazy," Tali said putting a long drawn emphasis on crazy.

"Right away," Shepard said though he remained uneasy about her returning to work in her condition, but knew that he couldn't argue with her. They made it to the elevator and pressed the engineering level on the panel. Tali stared at Shepard all the way down. Shepard felt her stare focusing on him so he turned to her.

"Yes, Tali?" Shepard asked with a smile.

"Chakwas said you sat outside my room for three weeks straight," Tali said lovingly.

"I will never leave you Tali," Shepard said readjusting his grip on her shoulder.

Tali took a few breaths and looked down at the ground before looking back up at Shepard. "Thank you Shepard," Tali said softly as she pulled herself around him to hug him.

The doors to the engineering deck opened. Tali let go of Shepard and limped slowly across the deck holding onto all the railings and outcroppings she could find.

"You going to be alright?" Shepard said advancing to her with his arm out.

"I'm fine…" she pulled herself up into a relaxed posture. "… just a little stiff."

"Don't hurt yourself again," Shepard said giving her a smile.

"I can't make any promises," Tali said giggling slightly.

Before the doors closed on the elevator Shepard made a shape of a phone with his hand and put it next to his ear and lipped "call me" , and pointed up. This made her laugh one last time before Shepard lost sight of her. The long elevator ride up gave him time to think. He also became aware of his heart that was trying to beat its way out of his chest. Was he that excited that she was alive, at least all but her hand? The doors to his cabin opened and Shepard took a look around at the disarray that the room had fallen into. He looked into his fish tank and frowned.

"Great… I'm going to have to buy some new fish," Shepard said.

Joker's voice came over the on-board intercom.

"Commander, message for ya"

"Ok Joker patch them through"

"Hello Shepard, It's been a long time…" came a disturbing voice on the other end.


	6. Chapter 6: Repair

"That's not possible!" Shepard said loudly. "Joker! Disconnect the connection!"

"He can't hear you Shepard…" said the voice that began to sound more like it was in his head than it was actually being transmitted from the intercom.

Shepard walked over to the door and pressed the open panel. Nothing. He tried again. Nothing. He turned angrily back like the voice was an entity in the room.

"What do you want?" Shepard demanded.

"We want you Shepard. We need your form. We are the Harbinger of your perfection!" said Harbinger's voice audibly.

"How did you get this message through to me?" Shepard demanded putting even more strength into his voice.

"You cannot stop us Shepard," Harbinger blasted directly into his mind. Shepard walked around the room for some time before he answered.

"You sound scared!" Shepard said mockingly.

"We do not feel fear, Shepard," came Harbinger's intimidating voice; it didn't even make Shepard blink.

"Then you feel threatened by me, is that it?" Shepard said giving the room a smile in case Harbinger was using the sensors in the room to see him.

"Your form is fragile. We will not stop. We will never surrender, Shepard. We are Harbinger," Harbinger echoed into the cabin or at least Shepard's mind.

"That phrase has been imbued into my mind after killing all of your _mighty_ Collectors. Repeating yourself is a sign of frustration, and if your able to get frustrated then you can become threatened," Shepard said giving a sly smirk again.

"We will be in your galaxy in four years. We warn you Shepard, we will spare no one," Harbinger said with strain hinted in his intimidating voice. This caused Shepard to smile again.

"Commander?! Can you read me? Shepard!" Joker's voice played back onto the intercom.

"Yes Joker, I'm here," Shepard said still smiling.

"What happened!?" Joker asked.

"Just an old friend… Private call," Shepard said finally becoming aware of the beating on his door with soft hands. He knew who it was and walked slowly to the door and readied himself to catch her when she fell through the door.

He hit the panel and held out his hands right when Tali stumbled in through the door and fell into Shepard's outstretched arms. She stared surprisingly up at him trying to catch her breath which was still somewhat raspy. Shepard made no attempt to lift her up to her feet. He thought the light from the hallway with the darkness from his room made her look even more stunning. He smiled and laughed lightly.

"Shepard? I heard Joker trying to contact you and after three minutes of no word it made me worried… about… … you… and I thought… something…" Tali was slowing down when she realized that Shepard wasn't lifting her up and that he was staring into her eyes. "Wow. Your cabin is hot… Why are you staring at me like that? Is something on my mask? Shepard…" seeing the game she starts to giggle. Shepard took the giggle as a go for tickling her. "Shepard!" Burst of laughter. "Stop it!" She squirmed to get out of his hands, but she was still too weak to do anything. "Shepard!" her voiced squeaked. Shepard lifted her up and her close to him by the waist.

"Do you feel better?" Shepard asked staring into Tali's eyes that were slightly squinted to show her happiness.

"A lot. Thank you Shepard," Tali said putting her hands around his neck and lacing them.

They rocked back and forth like they were waltzing. Tali still had a heavy limp, but beyond that their movements were smooth and loving. Tali kept her eyes focused directly on Shepard as they circled each other into his room. Tali glanced for a second at his fish tank and looked back to Shepard.

"You didn't feed your fish…" Tali said lost in the romantic, music-less dance.

"A lot was on my mind," Shepard said, his eyes partially closed as he looked into Tali's mask, into her glowing her eyes.

"I still fed them when you were gone," Tali said with a smile spreading across her hidden face.

"Well… You worried me more than my fish did. I could get more fish, but I couldn't get more of you," Shepard said smiling into her helmet with tears misting his eyes.

"Shepard?… How did we ever come together like this?" Tali asked putting her head underneath of Shepard's chin as they continued to dance.

"Fate it would seem," Shepard said thinking about it for sometime.

"Or we needed each other more than we thought we did. I thought I needed something for my Pilgrimage. You thought you needed a mechanic. Turns out, I needed a man like you to show me how to actually live free from this suit, and you… you needed a someone like me," Tali said still buried in Shepard's embrace. They continued to dance, lost in each others embraces, forever spinning in each other's hearts. They could feel the heat of each others passion in the room. They lost track of time in their endless waltz. Shepard finally broke it pushing her softly from him.

"You know Tali… We are alone, in my cabin, and you feel better," Shepard said smiling.

"Ya what about it?" Tali asked happiness burning in her voice.

"Are you going to tell me about it?" Shepard asked.

"About what?" Tali asked pretending not to know.

"You know what I mean," Shepard said as he smiled.

Tali lifted up her right hand. "You mean this?" Tali asked still acting like she was unaware that Shepard was in the room when Mordin told her that he had put the device into her cybernetic hand.

"Yes Tali," Shepard said giving her a look that said she was beginning to annoy him.

Tali enjoyed seeing him become annoyed at her. It made her smile with the idea that nothing but her could get on The Great Commander Shepard's nerves. She turned around and walked with a happy spring in her step as she walked over to the coach and sat down. Shepard could tell that she was, even though the pain must have been quite unbearable to walk like that, incredibly happy. Tali looked at the vacant spot next to her and patted it with her hand. Shepard walked over to her giving her an "all right" look. He sat beside her and she looked directly into her eyes.

"I was hoping there would be better circumstances, but you know… things came up," Tali said happily as she lifted her cybernetic hand again. "But since you insist. I guess I am obligated to tell you… Commander."

Tali looked at her right hand and used her left hand to punch in a series of gestures onto the palm of it. The thing beeped cheerily and shot a small jet of air out of the side. She brought her hands up to her mask and pulled it off revealing a face of pure smiles. Her face glistened brightly from the beautiful glow of her eyes. Shepard stared at her for a bit before he could catch the words that he wanted to say.

"Did you take some immuno-enhancers before you came?" Shepard asked quizzically.

Tali shook her head no with her face still burning with a brilliant smile.

"What did you do?!" Shepard asked rising a bit and leaning towards her putting his hands on her face.

"I did some research, and I worked on some theories in my downtime. Basically I invented this device to bolster my immune system so I can take this," motioning towards the violet mask laying beside her, "off whenever I want and I can have it off for longer." She gave Shepard a huge grin as she saw the smile grow across his face at every word she said.

"Tali!" Shepard said as he gave her a long and passionate kiss. She shared the kiss with him, but pushed him off.

"There's more. There's more." Tali said regaining her composure. "I didn't just make this so that we can have longer nights together, but because I did more research into the matter of our first night together." Tali said smiling ear to ear.

"What did you learn?" Shepard asked intrigued by this turn of events.

"I found that humans and quarians share the same number and characteristic chromosomes," Tali said

"And what does that mean exactly?" Shepard asked though he knew the answer he wanted to hear her say it.

"It means that we can share more than trust and love among us. We can…" Tali moved closer to Shepard sliding her hands up his chest up to his head until they stopped at his cheeks. "you know…"

"Are you saying that your pregnant?" Shepard asked staring into her brilliant eyes.

"No… but I can… and I want it to be yours," Tali said as glowing tears fell from her eyes sliding softly down her cheeks. Shepard was at a total loss for words. He remembered the simulation that he was in and hoped that this wasn't just a simulation. He hoped that this was real.

Tali wiped the tears from her eyes and cleared her throat. "Now that I've told you my secret will you tell me who you were talking to?" Tali asked smiling.

"I could, but it would spoil the mood," Shepard said, his vision blurred by the tears welling up in them.

"Tell me," she said playfully.

Shepard took on a more serious tone and stood up. He rubbed the bridge of his nose and stretched his back before looking at the beautiful quarian lounging on his couch. He imagined his life with her. The life they could manageably share with each other with this new device, but all of that burned with the image of a Reaper ship.

"It was Harbinger," Shepard finally managed to say. He say the happiness fade almost instantly from Tali's face. "They're going to be in our galaxy in four years."

"Shepard… I… I didn't know…" She stood to leave "I should go." Tali stammered, disturbed by the news.

Shepard caught hold of her hand. He pulled her in and kissed her. They lost each other in that kiss. The idea of the Reapers faded quickly from their minds. At the same time the door opened with Legion standing looking at Shepard.

"Shepard Commander. We need to talk."


	7. Chapter 7: Information

Shepard turned his attention back to Tali with a small smirk, but his eyes showed he was annoyed at the timing of Legion's appearance. Tali gave Shepard a small smile before she nodded lightly in agreeing with Shepard's unspoken words. She kept her hands in Shepard's while they walked apart, breaking only when they got arms reach apart. Tali walked over to the bed and sat down crossing her arms and giving a huff of exasperation. Shepard walked over to Legion and gave a small sigh before talking.

"What do you need Legion?" Shepard asked.

"This installation desires to give Shepard Commander a gift," Legion said as the panels around his eyes flared at the word gift.

"What kind of gift?" Shepard asked intrigued. Tali too became intrigued and leaned forwards so she wouldn't miss it.

"A gift of information," Legion said turning his gaze to Tali for a second before turning it back to Shepard.

"What's the information?" Shepard asked.

"We have found navigational coordinates given to the Old Machine, Nazara, by Harbinger. The Reaper Armada is planning to hit the Valhalla Threshold first, "Legion said bringing his attention back to Tali for a second. Shepard turned to see Tali lost in thought and dismayed by this information.

"We need to stop them Shepard before they hit the Flotilla!" Tali exclaimed causing her to stand with fists clenched.

"I plan on doing that Tali," Shepard said extending his hand to tell her to calm down. "I still have four years to unify this galaxy against the Reaper threat."

"There is more Shepard Commander," Legion said not breaking his stare from Tali. "We have reached a consensus about the Creators and Geth War." Tali again seemed lost in the monotonic words of Legion.

"What have you reached a consensus about?" Tali asked with anticipation burning in her voice.

"We wish for… coexistence, an alliance with the Creators," Legion said as the ring around his glowing eye refocused his attention.

Tali collapsed back into a seated position back onto Shepard's bed, her hands fell limply onto her lap, her mouth slightly open while her head slowly nodded back and forth. She brought her hands up to her face and pressed her fingers up by her eyes so they reformed fists. She clenched her teeth before she started sobbing. Her body jerked as she took in broken mouthfuls of air. Shepard looked back at Legion who looked over at Shepard and back to Tali confused at the scene taking place.

Shepard whispered to Legion, "Is that all?"

"Yes," Legion said in a slightly lower tone.

"Then you are dismissed," Shepard said bowing his head down and turning his attention back to Tali who was still crying on his bed.

Legion left without a word while Shepard made his way over to the hunched form of Tali. He sat down beside her and put his arms around her. She quickly turned and buried her head in his chest continuing to cry. Between sobs she managed to say a few words.

"I…never thought…I…we…finally go…home…home," Tali trailed off as she repeated the last word over and over to herself.

Shepard rubbed her back and the back of her head. He couldn't think of anything to say to her; this was the most important news Tali had heard, and it was said in one of the most unexpected times. Tali took another heavy breath into Shepard's chest before she was able to push off of him so she could look up at him. The tears in her eyes and down her cheek made her look even more stunning. Shepard slid the hood back off of her head revealing the sloping ridges on her head and the ridges that go with it. The clash of the white glow from her eyes and the darkened violet of her skin made her a brilliance of darks and lights. The tears enhanced the glow giving her face extenuated glow, a metaphor of her radiant beauty. Just as before, Shepard was at a loss for words at her brilliance. Tali stared back into Shepard's eyes mystified at the love behind his eyes which caused her to stop crying.

"Shepard…" Tali said as she leaned forwards and her eyes closed.

Their lips met halfway between them. They kissed each other deeply and lovingly. Tali eventually put her hand onto Shepard's head pulling him closer to the kiss. Shepard, too, grabbed her head and pushed her in to make the kiss even deeper. Tali continued to kiss him as she pushed him back onto the bed getting on top of him. She never realized how much she missed his touch, his skin on hers as she rubbed her hands behind Shepard's ears, through his hair. She stopped long enough to get another glance at Shepard's eyes which still wore a strong love in them.

"Tali…" Shepard said in almost a whisper while he sat up with Tali still on him. "You are the most amazing woman that I have every met." He gave Tali a small kiss with his hands on the back of her head. They pressed their heads together as Tali gave another sigh.

"Why do you say these things Shepard? Look at all you have done compared to me. You saved the galaxy…twice…" she said giving him a small kiss.

"But I never met any one as perfect as you…" Shepard said staring into her eyes. He could see them well back up with tears but she held them as she smiled brightly for him.

"Your just saying that!" Tali said with a giggle.

"Am I?" Shepard said smiling lovingly at her with his eyes glazed with love. Tali laughed as she leaned back, but she still held Shepard's head.

"Perfect, you say… well I am quarian," she said jokingly. This made Shepard laugh.

"I have a perfect quarian sitting in my lap at this instant trying to stick her tongue in my mouth!" Shepard said pretending to announce it to the galaxy.

Tali face changed to a joking shocked look as she pushed him back on the bed so he was laying down again. She grabbed his hands and held them above his head as she did "attempt" to stick her tongue in his mouth. Shepard took the kiss with much courage as he rolled her over with his strength so that he was on top of her. Tali laid their looking up at him smiling.

"So Ms. Tali'Zorah," hearing her name said like this made her smile, "how long can you now stay out of your suit with your new toy?" Shepard said lacing his fingers with her right hand.

She reached up and wrapped her arms around his head and pulled him in close and whispered in his ear. "Around 10 hour bursts twice a week…"

"10 hours you say?" Shepard said giving a whistle. "Well Ms. Tali'Zorah, we have a lot of work to do."

Tali gave him a smile before She grabbed the bottom of his shirt to take it off. He worked patiently on the buckles and straps of her suit. At the time that she managed to slip the shirt off of him, he had managed to loosen the whole top of her suit, quite a feat in Tali's eyes. It didn't take much time for them to finish their individual tasks, and proceed with the celebration of Tali's well being and the return of her home world.

With Tali laying completely naked on his bed he could see the damage that was wrought on her body by the explosion. Most of it had healed, but her right arm was still raw looking with burns and her right foot showed signs of scarring from the third degree burns. The memories flashed back into Shepard's mind, but was lost quickly when Tali brought her one leg up sliding it by her other, crossing them at the knees and bringing it up to her thighs. At the same time she slid her hands up from her waist, up her sides, and up to the pillow above her head giving him a smile.

They were a perfect match for each other and their was most likely no other person in the galaxy that suited them more. The night continued on passionately and undisturbed. The window and glass of Shepard's empty fish tank became fogged and the lights dimmed to a romantic setting as they held each other close and tightly. The bond of their love could have been seen that night, a glowing, unbreakable cable holding their hearts together. This was the second night that they had felt each others skin. The second night that they showed how intimately they loved each other. The second night that they felt like the only living beings in the galaxy. Their bodies intertwined with each others.

Their bodies becoming both wet and hot to the touch. Tali slid her hand up the back of Shepard feeling the warmth as he kissed her neck. No amount of neural interfaces and VI hook-ups could possible mirror these sensations, these feelings, all of the tastes and smells, the heat, the heart rate, the passion. The night continued on for an eternity. Time was lost in that cabin as the fated lovers laid in that bed.

Neither of them knew when it had ended. They could only remember laying beside each other staring into each other's eyes smiling. Tali couldn't get enough of Shepard's face as her eyes darted around his face, but ending on his eyes again. Their arms were still wrapped around each other and Tali's leg still rested on Shepard's hip. Tali rubbed her hand through Shepard's sweaty hair as Shepard rubbed the top of Tali's head. What more could they do? They had each other and that's all that mattered at this moment.

"How long do you have left?" Shepard asked with a smile.

Tali turned to look at the clock and with quite an amazement said, "I still have 7 hours."

"Then we should get some sleep with you out of your suit," Shepard said.

"I would like that," Tali said softly hugging him, closing her eyes.

Shepard too felt his eyes begin to drop and he drifted off to sleep with Tali still in his arms, alive and real. The lights slowly dimmed completely in the Captain's quarters to begin their sleep cycle.


	8. Chapter 8: Approach

Shepard woke up with Tali sleeping softly beside him, still out of her suit. _What time is it?_ Shepard thought while he rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and slid silently out of bed. His eyes focused slowly on the clock beside his bed and once it came into view shook his head and cleared his dry mouth. He looked back down at Tali who was drooling on the pillow she was hugging tightly. This almost made Shepard burst with laughter, but he managed to walk to the shower to get a bath. He wasn't in the room long, under the warm water that soothed his body, when he heard a voice right outside the shower.

"Shepard…" came Tali's voice weakly from the other side.

Shepard turned to see Tali standing naked in the middle of his room rubbing her eyes at him. She stretched a bit and smacked her lips together trying to break the dryness of her mouth. She stared at Shepard with sleepy eyes at him under the water. She followed the water stream and appeared to be lost in thought for awhile Shepard stared at her with a smile.

"Want to join me?" Shepard asked stepping out of the water and presenting it like a show was about to start.

"I don't know how my body will react to the water," Tali said rubbing her eyes again.

"Well you wont know until you've tried it," Shepard said smiling.

"I don't think I shou…" Tali broke off as Shepard flicked water at her, "SHEPARD!"

"Now your have to come get me," Shepard said as he stepped farther back into the shower.

Tali saw the water did nothing to her skin; no burning sensations, no redness or chaffing, no reaction. She felt the water wasn't like the sweat she felt the night before, it felt more relaxing more serene. She smiled at Shepard and gave a small laugh as she stepped into the wet shower. Her feet were the first to touch it. Her two front toes moved and stretched as she felt the warm and wet water soak into them. She still wasn't so sure of putting her head under so she turned around and walked backwards into the falling water. Her legs were next to get wet as the water moved up her body. Tali had closed her eyes and was enjoying the soothing fall of water on her body. The water now sprinkled on her back which sent a shiver up her spine.

"Shepard, this feels amazing," Tali said with her eyes still closed. She only backed up to the point that the water fell on her tense shoulders.

She didn't know how long she stood there before she felt hands wrap around from behind her and begin to pull her further into the water. She felt the water go up her neck and eventually sprinkle onto her head causing streams to run down her face. She smiled and looked up into the water so that it fell directly on her face. She didn't know if she enjoyed this more than she enjoyed the night before.

Shepard stepped out of the shower and offered his hand for Tali who accepted it with a laugh before she got out. Shepard grabbed two towels and threw one to Tali who held it awhile looking at the water droplets that still stood on her skin. She looked sadly over at her suit that laid beside the bed. She didn't realize that she was missing so much being stuck in that suit.

"You better dry off and get back in your suit Ms. vas Normandy," Shepard said catching her forlorn gaze. "You have only half an hour."

Tali sighed heavily before she worked on drying herself off. She never broke that sad gaze at her suit. She sat down on the bed and began the process of putting the suit back on, sealing the suits enviro-chambers, checking the life support manifold, reestablishing onboard suit control features. She also came to the realization of the tear and missing piece of fabric from her hood.

"O Keelah…" Tali said as she slipped her fingers into the hole.

Shepard realized what she was doing and walked over to his desk and opened the right hand side drawer. He pulled out the piece of fabric and walked over to Tali who was still looking sadly at the suit. He held it out to her.

"I think your missing something," Shepard said giving her a hopeful smile.

"Thank you Shepard," Tali said grabbing the piece and pulling a suit repair kit out of the side pocket of her suit. Tali took a long deep breath and looked around the room with misty eyes. "I'm going to miss this Shepard."

"We can do this two times a week, remember?" Shepard said sitting next to her.

"Yes I know Shepard, but… I want this to be forever," Tali said as she sealed the piece of fabric into the hole making it seem like there was never a rip in the first place.

"Some day it might be possible, but right now we have this which is more than we had," Shepard said giving her another hopeful smile. It worked.

Tali smiled and moved the suit on her lap trying to figure what she could say, but instead she looked over at the clock and sighed. She stood up and began the process of putting the suit back on which took her longer than normal. Shepard and Tali laced their hands together and walked to the elevator. The ride down to the CIC was pleasantly quiet. The door opened to reveal Mordin standing in front of them.

"Commander. Just coming to check. Worried about time constraints. Concerned about health… feared the worst," Mordin said in his usual broken language.

"Thank you for the concern Mordin, but I'm fine. Your invention worked like a charm," Tali said happily.

"Not my invention. Your invention Ms. Tali'Zorah. You gave me the blueprints for the original design. Integrated it into hand. Only thing I _invented_," Mordin said, defensively lifting his hands with a smile.

Tali limped over to Mordin and gave him a hug and whispered something to Mordin that Shepard couldn't hear. Shepard shrugged it off; he wasn't the nosy type. He watched as she slowly turned from him and walked back to Shepard who was patiently waiting at the doors to the elevator. She teased Shepard by walking with more swing in her hips. Shepard managed to see Mordin look at her with confused puzzled eyes before he managed to break the trance and get back to his lab. She strolled right up Shepard and giggled slightly showing she was aware of Mordin's stare. She stepped into the elevator and waved with only her fingers.

"Bye Shepard…" she said as the doors slid shut.

Shepard didn't miss a beat. He turned sharply around and walked up the steps to the galactic map and zoomed in on the Valhalla Threshold. He punched in the coordinates to Joker and he felt the small directional pattern of the ships gravity fluctuate as Joker activated the FTL drive. They arrived at the Mass Relay of the Horsehead Nebula. Shepard had moved up to Joker's side looking out the front windows of the ship. The massive colossus glowing blue with large spinning halos orbiting its core lingered silently in space directly in front of them. The sight of the mass relays were still a sight to behold, and the memories of the Reapers returned just the same. Shepard stood in a confident position as Joker activated the relay and they instantaneously arrived at the Valhalla Threshold, with the glory of the binary white stars gleaming brilliantly. A small blurry ring orbited these stars, a massive collection of vessels of all sizes, the Flotilla, the quarian fleet.

"Joker, take us in," Shepard said staring hard at the vessels. _How am I going to make them believe Legion's message?_

The quarians allowed him access upon hearing his name and their ship was cleansed. Shepard took the two people who were the most qualified and the most obvious choice for this diplomatic mission, Legion and Tali. They made their way to the main room with uneasy glares by quarians as they saw a live, active geth walking among them. The Admirals and the Council were already present at the meeting. Upon seeing Legion walk into the main room, they too shared bewildered looks and the room fell silent with only the occasional whisper.

"What is the meaning of this?" asked Shala'Raan vas Tonbay who stood at the podium for this meeting as well.

"This is a member of my crew, and he wishes to speak to the quarian people representing the geth," Shepard said, his last word causing a few quarians in the seats to shudder. Shepard turned to Legion, "Relay the message."

Legion nodded and stepped forward. The quarian security around the room put their hands on their heavy pistols, ready for the worst.

"This installation wishes to speak for all Geth. We have a message for the Creators," Legion said staring hard at Shala. "We have become aware of the attack from the Old Machines and have weighed the consequences and we have reached a consensus," Legion said bringing his attention to all of the Admirals. "We want coexistence…"

The main room erupted with mixed results. Cheers and claps were heard alongside boos and skepticism. The Admirals themselves were taken off-balance by these unexpected words. Most looked at each other not knowing how to respond to such a response.

"Is this true?" Shala asked, a little winded from the initial shock of the message.

"Yes," Legion said.

"How can we believe you?" Shala asked, regaining her confidence and will. Her words caused the room to fall deathly silent again. Tali stepped forward.

"You have my word that he is telling the truth," Tali said. This caused Legion to look at her with a hint of surprise. Shepard was also quite taken off-guard by this even though he expected it to happen.

"Tali'Zorah vas Normandy… You put your trust in a machine that your father worked so hard to stop?" asked Shala who sounded like even she was thrown off-balance at Tali's support.

"These aren't like the geth that we have been fighting. They are different," Tali said looking slightly at Legion who stared at her before turning his attention back to the Admiralty Board.

"That's quite a thing to say, Tali'Zorah. I wonder how your father would react," Shala said drifting in thought.

"I believe we should listen to the geth!" chimed Zaal'Koris.

"Now Zaal, we can't be too hasty in this matter," said Han'Gerrel respectfully.

"We are not capable of deception through lies. We have reached a consensus. Unanimus," said Legion.

The Admirals whispered amongst themselves with loud outbursts made by both Zaal and Han. Daro didn't seem to put to much input into the matter.

"This conclave will allow this… installation's offer and accept it cautiously, but we warn you. If anything goes astray, we are ready to fight to the end," Shala said. Legion bowed in respect.

"Thank you…" Tali said bowing her head in respect.

"The conclave is now adjourned… Keelah se'lai," Shala said.

The room echoed in response. Tali, Legion and Shepard pushed past the excited individuals to get to the door to the chamber. Shepard saw one quarian come up and put his arm on Legion's shoulder and thank him. Legion only stared. Shepard atched Legion and slowly became more away of another gaze that was slowly boring a hole through him. He looked over and saw Tali staring intently at him.

"What is it?" Shepard asked.

"Surprise you Shepard?" Tali asked apparently smiling slyly under her mask.

"I did not expect that, no," Shepard said through his suit's radio.

"I'm surprised how fast this meeting went…" Tali added getting the hint from Shepard to switch to a private radio.

"Me, too," Shepard said. "It went very well."

"A bit too well if you ask me," Tali said with a hint of mistrust in her voice. Her eyes shifted to behind Shepard and she signaled Shepard to turn his speaker back on.

"We meet again Commander Shepard," said Shala.

"It's always an honor, Admiral," Shepard said turning to face her.

"You always bring such excitement and liveliness to this dead fleet. At times I wonder if it's safe to even have you on board," Shala said jokingly.

"I'm here to bring peace," added Shepard happily.

"An peace you have brought. Thank you Commander," Shala said giving him a hug and turning to return to the crowd.

"She likes you Shepard," Tali said boring another hole into Shepard's head.

"I guess I just have that charm on women I guess," Shepard said.

Tali pushed him jokingly laughing. Shepard, too, laughed at his joke. Legion stood around awkwardly having his arm shaken violently by every quarian that walked past him.

_Organics are curious creatures._


	9. Chapter 9: The Lure

Shepard stood at ease above the glowing galaxy hologram floating in front of him. The quarian and geth problem ended fairly well and he felt himself give a sigh of relief. _This galaxy has a chance._ Shepard thought with a smile. A beep on his personal computer broke him out of his trance. He walked off of his platform and flipped open the computers to see what the message was. Shepard's happiness turned sour quick as he read the message which was horribly corrupted.

_Hello? Hello? Can any012/?dy read me? We are un^%$ck.!?$!*& managed4*6!": terminal")_=%* message%& damn they're everywhere. If anybody g*&%$% we are under heavy&^&^% We are fac%$ number of&$%^&. The co(&%$& are encoded in^&&%^$ message._

Shepard quickly flipped through the files and opened the encoding algorithms hoping the coordinates were still attached; luckily they were. Shepard yelled up to Joker upon reading the coordinates.

"Joker. Set a course for the Minos Wasteland on the double!" Shepard yelled up to the helm.

"Aye. Aye. Commander," Joker yelled changing the course of the Normandy.

The trip was relatively short for most of the trips. Shepard took the short downtime to organize his landing party for immediate departure. He chose Tali and Garrus for this mission like he did for most of his missions. He didn't know what he was up against so he needed the experience and trust of Garrus and there could be potential LOKI and YMIR Mechs, an easy opponent against Tali's hacking skills. Tali was also begging him to let her come so she could stretch her legs a bit.

The landing shuttle close to a mining complex on the planet Pietas, a desert planet. Shepard and Garrus had to wear their helmets because of the dust storm while Tali exited the shuttle to look around. The two disembarked and formed into their regular formation with Shepard leading.

"Keep your eyes open," Shepard said looking into the blanket of sand that swirled around the entire complex. The sand was relentless and interfered with any outgoing radio communications. "They can be anywhere."

They walked slowly through the torrent of sand keeping a tight triangle defensive position to prevent being surrounded. Their weapons were drawn and they moved with slow synchronized steps. They gave a sigh of relief when they managed to get to the gate of the complex and hide behind the wall. The walls to the complex were luckily quite tall making the inner courtyard visible though still hazy. Shepard gave Tali and Garrus a few hand gestures telling them to move up to the half buried crates. Shepard watched as his friends ran to the cover.

Nothing.

Shepard then moved up past Garrus and Tali to the small ledge leading to the door way. He peeked his head up to see that the controls to the door had been blown out, yet the door was closed. Shepard waved his hand to his teammates moving them up to where he was hiding. They all stood in unison with their guns pointed at the door as Shepard climbed the small ledge and pulled the door open. The inside of the complex was dark with only a slight flicker of a light at the end of the hallway. The team stepped into the darkness keeping to the walls to allow as much sunlight to fill the dark chamber. Shepard glared at the end of the hallway, but couldn't make out what the object laying against the wall. They moved cautiously up making sure nothing rounded that corner. Shepard walked up and crouched down beside the body of a turian who had his head blown off. The blood splatters on the wall and the pool of blood described the scene to him. Bloody footprints led further into the complex. Some were human boot shapes while others were turian boot prints.

Shepard looked down the next hallway where a dozen more bodies lay, piled against the walls on each side, a river of blood flowing from the mass of corpses.

_Keelah_. Shepard heard Tali whisper to herself. Shepard maintained his composure and pressed on. His footsteps echoed eerily in the dark hallway as he approached the inner door. This door's automatic feature still worked and the door immediately threw itself open blinding Shepard and the rest of his team with light. The next room was well lit and also well armed.

"Blue Suns!" Shepard yelled running for cover at the sight of one of the soldiers catching sight of the door opening.

An instant later the room erupted into a hail of bullets. The crates Shepard dove behind slowly began to disintegrate as an endless wave of bullets chipped menacingly at them. Shepard could only keep his head low and look over to see that his teammates were equally in a bad place. He watched as Tali activated her Omni-tool and summoned Chitika who immediately rose above the bullets. Shepard took the distraction as did Garrus who rose and both began to fire into the large group of Blue Sun Mercenaries. Garrus hit one mercenary in the chest and watched as the concussive round caused his chest to explode. Shepard, too, watched as the stream of bullets from his assault rifle overload ones shield and rip violently into his armor before his head exploded with one well placed shot.

The thermal clip in Shepard's gun hissed violently as he crouched behind cover again. He looked over to Garrus who had already changed his clip and was continuing the onslaught, but he didn't see Tali there anymore. He poked his head up trying to find her, but he couldn't see her. Two mercenaries managed to kill Chitika who exploded violently sending glass shards and metal through their shields and into their soft eyes. More mercenaries emerged from a doorway and began their suppression fire. Shepard ducked just as the top of his crate exploded with bullets.

"Where's Tali?!" Shepard yelled over to Garrus.

Garrus had just hid behind his crate from the new firepower. He looked around and looked up at Shepard.

"I didn't even know she was gone!" Garrus yelled over the gun fire.

Shepard only clenched his teeth and peeked over his box in hopes of seeing her somewhere among the chaos. He just caught a glimpse of a dark silhouette of Tali climbing up the scaffolding behind the Blue Suns Mercenaries. He ducked down again just in time as a bullet crazed the top of his helmet leaving a deep scratch across it. He flipped his onboard radio hoping that he could get a message to her.

"Tali! What are you doing??" Shepard asked ducking farther behind the crates that now resembled Swiss cheese.

"Shepard! I, I, I'll tell you later. I don't have time. Get ready to give me a distraction." Tali said. Before Shepard could inquire about her motives she screamed "Now!"

Garrus and Shepard rose at the same time. Many of the mercenaries were caught off guard by this sudden attack and hesitated, but only briefly. They focused their fire on Shepard and Garrus who both strafed in opposite directions toward the walls and a new supply of crates. They quickly dove behind the crates, completely unaware that the fire was beginning to die down. When they finally became aware and poked their heads out to investigate they were amazed at what they saw.

* * *

Tali had worked furiously to activate Chitika. She diverted her attention to both Garrus and Shepard seeing them take the opportunity to fire as did the mercenaries because of her drones distraction. She rose quickly and ran behind Garrus and crawled through a stack of crates; she emerged in the thick of the scaffolding. She looked around quickly as she heard the firing of Shepard and Garrus die down, while the mercenaries, from the increased footsteps above her, gained reinforcements. She frantically looked around to help her pinned teammates, but she could only see a hole to the platform above, a platform filled with Blue Suns Mercenaries. She took a deep breath in and closed her eyes gaining some composure and confidence at what she was doing. She climbed up the support poles of the scaffolding easier that she thought she could. She managed to climb to a point where she could see the crates Shepard and Garrus had taken cover behind.

Then from the left crate she caught sight of Shepard's helmet rise up and look around and look straight at her. She watched as he sank back down at the same time she saw the top of his helmet explode.

_Keelah! No!_ Tali quickly thought diverting her attention from the scene. Then she heard the radio crackle into existence as Shepard's voice called to her.

"Tali! What are you doing?? Shepard asked angrily.

She was so happy to hear his voice and almost forgot to reply.

"Shepard! I, I," Tali stammered, but stopped upon hearing voices above her. "I'll tell you later. Get ready to give me a distraction." Tali told Shepard. She heard her opportunity before she could explain what she was doing. "Now!"

She watched as Garrus and Shepard rose in unison raining death upon the platform right above her. She pulled her knife out from her leg sheath and prayed briefly. _Keelah. Give me strength and speed_. She pulled herself out of the hole and pulled out her hand cannon. She disintegrated the back of the mercenary the second closest from her which caused the one closer to her to turn right into her knife that easily severed his head from his body. The collapse of the first victim brought the attention of two other mercenaries who turned just in time to meet Tali who had just folded her shotgun out. One's helmet completely bent itself in while the other was blown off the side of the platform.

Tali ran to the next three mercenaries who were aware of her presence. She slid past the first sliding her knife across the exposed leg joints sending the helpless mercenary into a screaming fit on the ground. In one fluid motion she brought down the knife into the head of the mercenary in front of her and used her enhanced right hand to fire her shotgun with one hand to topple the third.

Tali's heart raced at her actions; she almost laughed at how easy this all felt. Then she froze with fear as she felt a barrel of a high-power pistol press against the back of her head.

"Nothing I hate more than a dirty quarian," the mercenary legionnaire said, "I'm going to enjoy watching your brains…" The mercenary was cut off as a well aimed sniper shell entered his brain. Tali glanced over to see Garrus standing with his sniper still aimed in her direction. She almost jumped for joy, but caught out of the corner of her eye the disabled mercenary moving. She turned and walked slowly to him. She held her hands out defensively.

"You don't need to die here," Tali said compassionately to the bleeding human. "We will take you back to our ship and patch you up and send you on your way."

"Shut up you f***ing quarian pig!" the man yelled as he tried to pull the pistol from his holster. Tali leaped forwards onto the man and grabbed the arm with her right hand. She squeezed and heard sight popping sounds as the man's arm threatened to break.

"Ok! Ok! Let go of my arm. Please! Please!" the helpless man pleaded. Tali let go and looked at her hand.

"You really outdid yourself Mordin," She said to herself as Shepard and Garrus both made it up to the top.

* * *

There, Shepard saw a bloody Tali'Zorah wiping the blood from her blade from a cloth she kept in one of her pockets.

"Damn…" Garrus said looking around at the carnage. "Remind me never to make fun of your immune system again."

Shepard could tell that Tali was shaken at all that she had done. He watched as she attempted three times to slip the blade into its sheath. He walked over to her and gave her a comforting embrace. At the same time he wiped some splatters of blood that had been sprayed on her visor.

"Shepard? That was amazing, but I don't know how I did it," Tali said in a shaky, unsteady voice. "I just reacted, and I, I, I seen your helmet, and they, your cover was almost, so I, reacted."

Shepard stared into Tali's visor smiling and at one point laughing.

"Tali, that was amazing!" Shepard said pulling her into a stronger hug.

Tali was at a loss for words and could only laugh while she hugged him. Garrus on the other hand was interrogating the badly bleeding man. Garrus rose with an unpleasant look in his eyes.

"Shepard, I think you should hear this." Garrus said grimly.


	10. Chapter 10: Sacrifice

Shepard let go of Tali and turned to the bleeding mercenary who had propped himself up on the railing. Shepard walked over to the heaving man and crouched beside him, Garrus joined him.

"Tell him what you told me," Garrus told the mercenary.

The wounded man's eyes looked pleadingly over to Shepard. His voice sounded raspier and more broken by the minute. Shepard took the hint and spread some medi-gel on the man's wounds. The man gave a sigh of relief.

"Thank you Shepard," the man said.

"How do you know my name?" Shepard asked the man trying to hide his surprise.

"_How do I know your name?_" the man asked sarcastically trying to laugh, but giving up with a jolt of pain. "How don't I know who you are?"

"That's a fair answer, Shepard," Garrus said turning his attention to Shepard who gave Garrus an understanding nod.

"What were you going to tell me?" Shepard asked bringing his attention back to the man.

The man gave a heavy sigh. Shepard assumed he was collecting his thoughts or that he couldn't believe that he was giving Shepard this information.

"We were only the guards…" the man said providing a small pause to see if Shepard understood what he was hinting at, obviously he didn't so he continued, "Our group consisted of only a dozen to about the hundred that are further in this base."

"I didn't think the Blue Suns could expend this many mercenaries," Shepard said giving Garrus a quick worried glance.

"It's not just Blue Suns," The man breathed with pain and grabbed his side. "It's everyone: Eclipse, Blood Pack, and other minor mercenary bands."

"Why are they all here?" Shepard asked.

"It's a plot. A plot to kill you. That message you received was planned. You are going to die here Shepard. You and the rest of your crew. We found a way to get to you, but we needed enough firepower to guarantee it." The man tried to laugh menacingly, but coughed instead.

Shepard stood quickly and turned to Tali who was still standing where he left her.

"We need to get out of here!" Shepard said pointing to the door they came in.

The door suddenly exploded causing the ceiling and part of the wall to fall over and cover the doorway. Shepard ducked quickly behind the wounded man. When Shepard rose and the dust cleared he could see that escape was impossible.

"Normandy! Normandy do you read!" Shepard yelled activating his ship radio. "Normandy!"

"They can't hear us remember." Tali said. "The sand storm is blocking our messages to the Normandy."

"We planned this perfectly, Shepard. Perfectly." The wounded man said as he drifted and slouched to the right. He died on the spot with no more information.

Shepard walked over to the wall and kicked it, and put his hands on his head. Tali raised her hand to say something, but couldn't find anything positive to say at that moment. Garrus stood up and looked over to the commander and waited further command though he too wanted to say something.

"What's the only other way out of this complex?" Shepard asked trying to collect himself.

"On the other side of the complex, Shepard." Garrus said bringing up schematics of the complex.

"Well, find some thermal clips and rest you legs. This is going to be a long day." Shepard said walking over to a tiny port window and looked outside.

They only waited an hour before they moved on. The rest of the complex appeared to be in better shape than that first hallway which was probably just a seller of the trap. They entered another big room. Luckily, it was empty, or at least they thought it was.

The lights blew out at once and the other side of the room erupted into a strobe of muzzle fire. The burning hot inferno rounds sent beams of light around the room. Shepard dove quickly behind a small center crate as Tali and Garrus moved far left and right hiding behind outcroppings of the wall. Garrus ran behind a large crate that was against the wall giving him excellent cover. Tali on the other hand became pinned behind a small jut of the wall. The gun fire switched almost instantaneously over to her causing her miniscule cover to quickly burn away. She stooped down and put her hands on her head and screamed into her radio.

"Shepard! Help me!" Tali screamed as more of her wall cracked away.

Shepard rose, but was greeted by the Gatling cannon of a YMIR Mech that appeared out of one of the boxes.

"Garrus! Draw its attention!" Shepard yelled into his radio.

He watched Garrus stand up and fire a concussive shot at the mech. It turned and aimed at him for only a moment, but turned to where Tali was still desperately hiding. The mech lifted its other hand and fired a rocket. Everything slowed down as Shepard stood up quickly and following the rocket as it flew towards Tali. He watched as Tali reached out to him. He felt the energy course through him as he readied his charge. He flew past the missile and landed directly in front of Tali in the missile's path. Tali looked up to Shepard and began to say his name as the missile exploded on his back. The explosion caused the wall to give way and fall. Garrus ran towards the explosion continuing to fire upon the mech. The armor of the mech gave way and the top diodes and cyber tonic brain blew into pieces sending the machine crashing to the ground.

"Shepard! Tali!" Garrus yelled into the rubble.

Gunfire whizzed by him causing him to hide behind the coffin that Shepard and Tali were now encased in. He loaded another concussive shot. He fired an overload into the containers behind the unknown number of enemies causing the one half of the room to explode. He fired his concussive round into the machinery above the other half, causing it to crash to the platform. The gunfire ceased as the other side of the room burned. Garrus crouched beside the rubble and began to dig through the rubble.

"Shepard! Tali! Do you read me!" Garrus yelled pleadingly for the first time in his life. "Shepard! You can't die! Not now!"

Some rubble moved in the middle of the pile as a shaking hand rose from it. Garrus climbed up the rubble over to the three fingered hand reached helplessly around. Garrus ripped the rubble away from around Tali. Tali rose out of rubble obviously upset.

"Tali? Where's the commander?" Garrus asked.

"He's, I, It's, I…" Tali stammered out turning away from the rubble.

Garrus only stood staring at Tali as she started crying. He turned back to the rubble and he could only stare at it.

"Shepard…" Garrus said quietly to himself. He felt his eyes get misted, and he couldn't believe that he felt like this. _I mean he's already died once_.

He did the only thing he could do at that moment. He walked over to Tali and extended his arms. She fell into his hands and cried heavily.

"It's all my fault! I should have never… I… I should have picked better cover. I should have never of fell in love with him. Stupid." Tali stammered off.

"Tali…" Garrus began, but stopped when he heard rubble begin to move again.

They both looked over hopefully at the rubble, but quickly became surprised when another YMIR Mech rose from the rubble. They both hid behind the rubble and regained themselves. Tali's sadness instantly transformed into anger as she rose from the rubble and ran full bore at the mech which luckily was held up on some cables. Garrus, too, felt a strong wave of anger envelope his feelings as he joined her charge. His concussive round disintegrated the face armor while Tali's shotgun disintegrated the head. They ran quickly away from the self destructing mech.

They both sat, breathing heavily, on the rubble trying to collect their feelings. Garrus rose first and turned slowly to Tali.

"We need to keep going." Garrus said.

"I know…" Tali said as she rose.


	11. Chapter 11: Reunited

Garrus and Tali walked slowly away from the rubble. When they reached the doorway that led to the lower levels, Tali looked over her shoulder at the rubble. She looked away and tried to keep a positive idea about everything, but the soreness of her body replayed the events over again in her head. _Why? Why did he jump in front of the rocket? Why?_

"Tali…" Garrus said.

"I know…" Tali said lifting her head and shotgun.

She was going to make every single mercenary suffer for what they did. They walked down the stairs to the next room which held at least six guards. Tali summoned Chitika behind the lounging guards who immediately jumped to their feet and turned to the glowing drone.

Tali and Garrus burst into the room and blew the two closet people away. Garrus overloaded the other four mercenary's shields. Chitika began to fire lightning bolts into the group. Tali threw her knife into the head of one distracted man as Garrus's machine gun sheared through another's armor. The two other's tried to make a run for the exit, but Tali caused Chitika to self destruct causing sharp shrapnel to break the helmets of the two unlucky warriors.

Tali killed one with a shot to the back of the head and nearly killed the other if Garrus didn't yank her hand down as she fired.

"We need him." Garrus said walking over to the blind cringing man.

He lifted the man up by the sides of his armor and pulled him close.

"Where is the exit you pig," Garrus demanded.

"Please! Pleasepleaseplease! Don't kill me!" The human pleaded.

"Just answer my question!" Garrus yelled. "Or I'll let my very disgruntled teammate deal with you, and you don't want that."

"I can't wait to talk with you," Tali said coldly cocking her shotgun for the effect.

"Ok! Ok!" the human yelled. There's a secret exit through the medical bay, an air vent. It was added after the schematics were made! The code to the door is PXK75RW. Please let me go!"

Garrus dropped the man to the ground and looked at him pathetically. He didn't want to spare the man, but he knew he would suffer enough with those facial wounds.

"Come on Tali," Garrus said preceding to walk to the next door.

Tali stared coldly down at the writhing, crying man. She hated every cell of the man's body, but managed to make herself walk out the door and proceed with their gauntlet.

* * *

Shepard opened his eyes to darkness. He activated the lights positioned on the outside of his suit. The room was still filled with a lingering dust. He looked up to where he guess he fell through to see that rubble filled the hole that the missile had blown into floor. He never felt happier that the missile had been jarred from its course by the shockwave produced by his charge.

He slightly laughed at his luck, but stopped abruptly when he remembered Tali. He reached up to press the radio of his suit, but he only felt heat and a large crack in his suit.

"Well maybe I wasn't that lucky," Shepard said, surveying the room.

The door to the room had a large beam laying against it.

"Great…" Shepard said walking over to better gauge the beam.

The beam had to weigh at least three tons and was buried about an inch into the door. Shepard sighed and gave a small push to the beam to see how bad it was. Felt like hitting a wall. He looked around the room again in hope of another exit.

"I'm in a closet…" Shepard said picking up a lab coat.

Shepard opened his Omni-tool and opened the schematics to the complex. He fell to the level below him into the closet. Shepard sighed. All of this was getting quite annoying. His radio crackled into life as he heard Garrus.

"Tali…" he heard Garrus say.

"I know…" he heard Tali say sadly.

_Why is she sad. Oh no. They think I'm dead._ Shepard slammed his hand against the radio button on his suit.

"Hey! I'm fine! I'm just stuck in a… closet…" Shepard yelled.

Nothing.

"Great…" Shepard said sitting down.

He sat and stared at the door and the beam. He thought hard about what he should do.

* * *

Garrus and Tali continued through the mercenary infested rooms. Each room they lay barren with no survivors. Neither of them said a word. They moved mechanically through the rooms. Nothing even got close to hitting them. Most enemies were clueless about them being in the base. _This doesn't seem like that well of a trap_.

They didn't bother checking any of the side rooms, what was the point? They continued on there quest to just get out of this hell-hole. One death was enough on their minds. They didn't even bother hiding behind the walls in the next room. They just ran in and unloaded into the surprised mercenaries. Most didn't even have time to grab their weapons. Others stood and hid, but were so thrown off balance that they too were killed quickly. One managed to fire his shotgun into the wall before Tali jumped onto the man stabbing him in the neck.

* * *

Shepard stood up quickly when the side wall was blown apart. He ran over to small chunk that was missing from the wall. _Damn! My hand won't fit_. Shepard tried to scream out the hole, but that didn't work because the radio of his suit was stuck trying to communicate to the Normandy. Shepard did the only thing he could do; He pulled out his shotgun and hid behind the beam and took aim. He fired directly at the hole.

Garrus and Tali looked over as a chunk of the side wall blew through.

"That was a bad move mercenary…" Tali said coldly, devoid of all feelings.

They hid behind a crate and they took aim at that very wall, and they too began to unload into trying to kill the unlucky soul hiding in the closet.

_They know I'm here!_ Shepard laughed with relief and he wanted to call out to them, but it wouldn't make a difference. The hole grew large enough for him to crawl through and the shooting on the other end had ceased. Shepard rose and ran over to the hole to duck through it. He got halfway out when he felt a gun press against his helmet.

"Where do you think your going?" Garrus asked him.

Shepard would have responded, but his suit prevented him from switching the speaker. Shepard also noticed the condition of his suit; it was dripping with yellow paint. _Oh my God!_ Shepard thought. He had to find some way of telling them who he was, and by the sound of their voices, he assumed that they thought he was dead. He raised his hands and started to slowly rise. The shotgun pressed firmly against the back of his helmet. He caught sight of Tali who was standing directly in front of him shotgun poised to destroy.

Luckily, Shepard's visor didn't have much paint on it. He stared directly into Tali's eyes trying to send some message that only she would understand. Her eyes looked so cold and distant. Shepard felt himself speak, but it only came out as a muffled murmur beneath the suit. Tali took a few steps forward, and stared harder into his visor. Shepard's heart began to race. If this didn't work, he was going to be killed by his friends.

Her eyes began to change more and more as she got closer. Shepard was one of the only people who could read each unique eye movement that Tali had. Her eyes were cold and indifferent at first, but changed to shocked curiosity. She was only five strides to him when she dropped her shotgun and ran directly into him.

"Shepard! Shepard! Is that you!?" Tali screamed through the radio.

Garrus, surprised at all of this, looked down at Tali who was sitting on this man.

Shepard was happy that it was a yes or no question. He shook his head the best he could and pointed to the huge crack running up the radio controls of his suit. Tali stared at him for what seemed to be an eternity. No one made a move. Garrus still had the shotgun pointed at him, but Shepard saw that he wasn't holding it tight enough for him to fire it.

He felt Tali begin to shake. She collapsed on him and started to cry. All he could do was listen to her talk.

"I thought I lost you again. I-I, it's, Keelah, Shepard! I…" Tali slowly lost control of her talking.

Shepard wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tightly before pushing her up. He pointed back to the crack of his suit.

"Oh… Yes… Of course…" Tali said trying to clear her voice of emotions.

She stood up and walked over to the side panel that they blew out and ripped a few wires out. She grabbed a chunk of metal and a bottle of space adhesive from one of her pockets. She quickly fashioned a small wired disk shape device and returned to Shepard who was now standing. She held the device up to the hole of his suit, but her hands were shaking too badly for her to get it right. Shepard grabbed a hold of her hands to steady them. This made Tali's heart jump three beats. Shepard's radio crackled back into life.

"Tali… Garrus… can you hear me?" Shepard asked, testing the radio.

Garrus shifted his weight and lifted the shotgun up to his shoulder. Tali was already hugging him right when she heard her name.

"You just can't die, can you Shepard?" Garrus asked in his usual tone.

"I guess I'm just too stubborn." Shepard said.

"We found a way out of here" Garrus said, shifting his weight again.

"Where?"

"Through the medical bay."

"How far is that?"

"One floor down on the opposite side of the complex."

"Let's get going then. I'm sick of this place."

The team appeared to move much more smoothly with the return of their commander. The next three rooms to the stairs were quite systematically destroyed. When they made it to the stairs, the alarm lights started to flash.

"Well it's about damn time." Garrus said looking up at the lights.

Shepard couldn't quite figure out how this was remotely a trap. It was just way to disorganized to work. He also noticed that, apart from the YMIR Mech, all of the mercenaries were Blue Suns. Nothing added up. Suddenly the intercom to the complex screeched into existence.

"Commander Shepard. Didn't bring your little mercenary friend with you this time? At least I know this place wont be burned down!"


	12. Chapter 12: Trap?

"Vido Santiago… We meet again…" Shepard said crossing him arms.

"It's an honor Shepard… an honor to finally watch you die by my hand. I thought I killed you with that missile, but your just as bad as Zaeed; you just won't die." Vido said.

"I guess we should see if your stubborn." Shepard said glaring at the speaker.

"You're a funny man Shepard. One funny man. I don't like people who think their funny. Nor do I like goody-goody heroes. Your stuck in here and you are going to die in here." Vido said giving a sinister laugh before ceasing the comm-link.

"This guy is getting annoying," Garrus said while he shook his head.

Shepard sighed and waved the team forwards.

"Come on, we need to take care of some old garbage." Shepard said walking down the stairs.

At the bottom of the stairs was a door to the next room. Shepard was standing right in front of the door when he heard voices on the other side.

"Vido says he's right up these stairs!" One person said.

"Are you crazy?" another asked, "He killed everyone up to this point!"

"He's just a man how bad could he be," Shepard heard the other man say who was right on the other side of the door.

The door opened with the man on the other end getting his head slammed against the side wall. The two other unfortunate people in the room were ripped to pieces by Garrus and Tali. Shepard lifted the half conscious man up and slammed him against the wall.

"OhmyGod, OhmyGod, please don't kill me," the man stammered off.

"Is that all you people can say?" Garrus said as he picked up a bloody thermal clip from one of the other bodies.

"What is Vido doing here?" Shepard demanded.

"I don't know!!!" the man yelled.

Shepard lifted his hand cannon and pressed it against the man's head.

"Well then your not useful to me are you? You just as much use as your friends over there." Shepard said motioning over to the corpses that Garrus and Tali were rooting through for thermal clips. The man's breathing intensified.

"Okokok, just lower the gun." the man pleaded.

"I'm glad I jogged your memory," Shepard said as he lowered his gun.

"Vido's been on about some commander and an old mercenary messing with his operation at some refinery. He's been coming up with a way of getting them back, but in a more controlled area so he could kill them both. He set up rooms of decoy men, fodder, to make you lower your guard. He-he has every mercenary band here to kill you. Please let me go!" the man said.

"One more thing, where's the medical bay?" Shepard asked getting closer to the man.

"Why wou… Oh… You don't want to go there. It's just a part of the trap. It's-it's rigged with explosives." the man said.

Shepard thought about it for awhile before he dropped the man.

"Your free to go," Shepard said turning back to Tali and Garrus.

The man walked two steps out the door and turned quickly pulling out his gun. Tali raised her hands in an attempt to warn Shepard, but Shepard had already lifted his gun up and blew the man's head off with his hand cannon. Shepard's eyes showed the regret of killing the man. He didn't have to die, but he brought it on himself. Shepard sighed as he holstered his pistol and pulled his assault rifle out. Garrus through him two thermal clips which he loaded into his rifle.

The mercenaries became far more organized and all were now waiting for him. The next room, Tali opened the door to a wall of bullets that barely missed her. The room exploded with gun fire.

"Auto-turrets!" Tali yelled over to Shepard.

"You know the drill!" Shepard yelled over to Tali.

Garrus ran by the door hitting the far wall with an overcharge, short-circuiting the two far turrets. Tali then ran past the door hacking one of the turrets. The turret instantly turned and destroyed the other turret. The confusion in the room gave Shepard and Garrus enough time to run into the room. One mercenary caught sight of them and turned to fire at them, but stopped upon feeling a sharp pain in his chest. He glanced down as his vision blurred to see the blood leaking from a single hole in his chest. He looked up just in time to see a quarian standing in the door way with a smoking pistol.

The other mercenaries destroyed the turret, but were now flanked on two sides. They took a triangle defensive position, but that only delayed the kill. Garrus changed to his sniper blowing through two mercenaries. The bullet sheared it's way through the first mercenary, but exploded into the second mercenary sending him flying over the barricade. Shepard shot through the flying man with his assault rifle killing one other man behind him.

_This is too easy. _Shepard thought as two more mercenaries fell. Only three mercenaries were left. Shepard hid behind his wall again and switched to his shotgun. He jumped around the corner and focused his biotic powers into a charge. He crashed into the first mercenary shooting him through the wall. Time slowed for Shepard as he spun and shot one mercenary square in the chest with the shotgun. The blast ripped his shields off and tore violently into the man's chest with still enough force to make him fly back. He hit the wall leaving a scrap of blood as he slid down the wall. As Shepard turned to the other man he raised his right elbow smashing the man in the helmet. He continued to spin bringing the barrel of the shotgun across the man's helmet.

Shepard listened as the man's neck broke with the second hit. Time resumed its normal course as Shepard watched the man's head bobble loosely on his neck as he fell. Shepard didn't know that he could be this annoyed at a mercenary, and for a second he felt like Garrus back on Omega. Shepard took a long breath to cool his nerves. Tali walked into the room and stared at Shepard, kind of shocked at this, then again she remembered how she reacted after she lost him. This place was making them go insane.

They continued on through the minor armed rooms. Each was a small battle and a hands down blood bath. Shepard walked up to a door that was at the end of all the rooms. He flipped open the schematics and looked them over to see what was in front of him. _It's the medical bay_. Shepard didn't know if he should chance it. He turned to his team and looked at them and they understood what he was going to do.

"Shepard. No! I'm not losing you again! If you're going to open this door then o am I!" Tali said stepping forwards and interlocking her arm with his.

Garrus stepped forwards and took his place beside Shepard.

"Shepard…" was Garrus's only reply.

"Well… Here we go." Shepard said as lifted his hand to the control panel. The hologram flickered into life jarring the door loose and sliding it open.


	13. Chapter 13: Confrontation

The door slid awkwardly slow causing Shepard to lift a defensive hand in front of his face. Garrus and Tali followed suit turning slightly. The room was dark. Shepard took a few steps forward into the room. Tali reached pleadingly out to him, but Garrus lowered her hand as they stared intently as Shepard moved on. The automatic lighting clicked on when Shepard had made it three strides into the room. He breathed out slowly as he looked around the room.

Crates lay on all corners of the room. The tables were piled with unlabeled crates. The room looked more like a storage compartment than a medical bay. Shepard made his way over to the nearest box, and stared at it; his heart beat twice as fast. He looked back to the door to see Garrus and Tali walk into the room almost as slow as he had. He looked back down at the crate and readied himself. Every nerve of his body tingled with fear of the contents of the crate.

Shepard took another breath in as he grabbed to edges of the lid. He could feel the weight of the crate, but he didn't move it yet. Instead he looked back to Tali and Garrus who were both staring at the crate. They moved their eyes up to meet his and see the worry in his eyes. They feared the tiniest of noises would set something off in the room. Tali walked over to Shepard and readied her Omni-tool, just in case hacking the bomb would be possible.

Shepard looked into Tali's eyes; he could see the essence of fear burning through her eyes and soul. He gave another look at Garrus who nodded slowly for Shepard to proceed. Shepard took another breath in and closed his eyes and listened to the quiet of the room. The muscles in his arm tensed as he lifted the lid slowly from the box. He picked it up as slowly as he could; millimeters at a time. He opened his eyes and looked down at the half removed lid to the crate. He moved the lid out of the way so he could see the contents of the crate.

Inside lay a device that Shepard had never seen before. Wires stretched to every corner, and lights beeping in a perfect rhythmic pattern. Tali swept the Omni-tool over the strange device. She breathed out all of the suspense and pressed a few commands on her Omni-tool causing it to close.

"It's a defibulator…" Tali said, laughing lightly.

Shepard sighed out and put his hand on his helmet.

"Let's find that door." Shepard said.

They scoured the room looking behind crates and panels.

"Shepard! Over here!" Tali yelled prying a upturned table off of the wall revealing a small maintenance door.

The key pad was right beside it. Shepard looked quizzically at the keypad then up to Tali. Tali's eye's showed the smile that was hidden behind the dark visor. Her fingers moved quick over the buttons, dialing in the code she was told from memory. The door depressurized and a strong wind blew into the room. The door opened only half way before it jammed.

"That's enough. Squeeze through!" Shepard said.

Tali looked up at Shepard as she slid through the gap that was almost too small for her. Garrus ran over next and he somehow managed to squeeze through.

"Commander Shepard…" came a voice from behind him, an all too familiar voice.

"Vido Santiago…" Shepard said as he slowly rose and turned to see the doorway filled with Vido and two YMIR Mechs.

"Leaving us are you? I don't think so!" Vido said as the maintenance door slid back into place.

Shepard could here Garrus and Tali slamming their fists against the door. He could here the faint squeak of Tali screaming his name. He slid his pistol out of its holster and built the biotic energy in him. Luckily, Vido was still in the middle of his victory speech.

"You thought that you could escape from my trap? You thought you would take a shortcut out of here?" Vido continued.

Shepard looked back down to see the keypad lighting up and flickering with light as code flew through the small monitor. He smiled to himself knowing the cause of the hack, but he knew he had to stall Vido some more before she could reverse hack a computer terminal from the other side of a wall.

"Escape? I don't know what you mean, Vido. I just created a trap against you. To lure you out, away from your mercenaries." Shepard said, mocking the proud man in front of him.

Vido stopped abruptly and looked around the room, but laughed heartily to brush off the feelings.

"Do you think I'm stupid?" Vido asked with a false bravado ringing in his voice.

"No… But I think your quite gullible." Shepard said looking back down at the keypad. _Half way there_.

"How dare you say that!" Vido yelled raising his pistol.

Shepard beat him to draw and had already fired two shots by the time Vido had drew his pistol. The two shots hit his shields square throwing them to half their charge. Vido gave a battle cry bringing forth the wall of bullets from the two YMIR Mechs Gatling Cannons. Shepard stood his ground as the wall behind him disintegrated to dust. He fired two more shots into Vido who backed up cowardly to his two mechs. His shields overloaded.

The maintenance door creaked open behind him. Shepard turned on his radio.

"Get away from the door!" Shepard yelled as he readied the intense strain his body was going to feel.

Shepard saw the blue biotic energy encase his body as he felt himself be propelled forwards at Vido. He smashed into Vido who smashed heavily into the side of one of the YMIR Mechs. Shepard watched as the whole side of Vido's armor exploded on impact. He saw Vido's face fall apart as his own helmet caved in on itself, but Shepard didn't have time to see if he tied. He turned on a dime and readied another charge. He flew back to the maintenance door hitting door causing it to blow into the small compartment.

Tali looked down as the chamber shook. She looked down from her ladder to see the door embedded about three inches into the wall and a cloud of ominous dust rising into the chamber. She saw a dark shadow run through the dust and grab hold of the ladder. It was Shepard.

He climbed furiously. He made it up only ten rungs when the doorway that Shepard had just "opened" exploded with bullets. She could hear the distant thuds of the massive YMIR Mechs approaching the hole that Shepard had blown in the wall. They wouldn't be able to make it if the mechs made it into the chamber. She wrapped her one arm around the one rung and opened her Omni-tool. She worked furiously calibrating the new parameters to Chitika. She looked back down to see Shepard climbing even faster. She activated Chitika who instantly flew down into the dust and hole. That would at least give them some time if Chitika didn't carry out the plans accordingly. She started her ascent again.

Shepard was right at Tali's heels. He looked up the perilously tall vent. An impossibly tall ladder. The mechs would be at the bottom of the chamber in thirty seconds at most. This wasn't going to work. He looked back down to see a dark shape emerge into the dust. A red light looked up at him as a dark mechanical voice rang through the vent.

"Target aquired…" the mech stated as it lifted its Gatling Cannon up.

Shepard closed his eyes and continued climbing as hard as he could. He thought he heard the distant click of the Gatling Cannon turning, but it didn't sound quite right. He looked down to see the bottom half of the chamber fill with a blue pulsating light. _An EMP_! He looked back up to Tali who was still climbing furiously then back down to see the shape of the YMIR Mech still pointing up at them.

They slowed their climb. They all stared down at the deactivated mech. Each breathed out with relief. Tali looked down into Shepard's eyes and clicked her radio to private.

"Now you can peacefully enjoy the scenery…" Tali said with a giggle.

Shepard was confused at first and opened his mouth to ask, but stopped when he looked up to Tali as she climbed the ladder, swinging her hips a bit more than usual. The climb wasn't so painful anymore as he listened to Tali laugh all the way up the ladder. He couldn't complain about her slow climbing speed, as much as he did want to forget about this hell hole.

They opened the man hole at the top of the vent. A stream of sand began to pour in as did the natural light or at least as much could make it through the sand storm. They all climbed happily into the sand. Garrus laid on his back for some time, as did Tali and Shepard. Tali rolled over and wrapped her hands around Shepard pulling herself on top of him.

"Don't you ever scare me like then again!" Tali said, feigning anger.

"Which time? Shepard asked.

They both laughed as Shepard rolled so she fell off of him back into the sand. Garrus was laying quite still.

"Garrus?" Shepard asked looking over at his friend.

Nothing.

"Garrus?" Shepard asked kicking some sand over at him.

Nothing.

Shepard crawled over to him and looked into his visor. He pushed Garrus's shoulder. He jerked back to life.

"Asleep on the job eh?" Shepard asked.

"You got me Shepard." Garrus said. "Let's just get back to the Normandy, I'm beat."

"Zaeed is going to love me forever." Shepard said.

"Or he's going to hate you for killing his prize." Tali said.

"How do you know I did that?" Shepard asked rolling over to see Tali laying on her stomach with her hands propping her head up.

"With all that commotion and Vido's voice stopped echoing, I only assumed." Tali said as she swung the back of legs back and forth.

"I think I killed him. If not, he's going to have one major headache when he wakes up." Shepard said laughing.

After a few more minutes of downtime in the sand, they stood back up and made their way to the shuttle. The shuttle was buried halfway in the engulfing sand, but the doors still managed to open. Garrus entered first as Shepard helped Tali in making her laugh. Shepard looked back at the complex with mad eyes. He never wanted to see this place again.

The shuttle's engines vibrated to life as they lifted into the air. Shepard sat across Tali who stared at him the entire flight. He flipped the radio back to private.

"You know you saved my life…" Shepard said

"You saved mine too…" Tali said happily.

"I think this deserves a reprieve…" Shepard said.

"That would be nice Commander," Tali said.

The shuttle made its way into the upper atmosphere of the planet Pietas. He glanced out the window to see the horizon of the planet painted brightly against the black, unknown background. He remembered all the promises he had made. He remembered the lives that were lost. The darkness would have all but consumed him at that moment, but Tali's voice pulled him back to the light.

"Don't worry Shepard… I'll feed the fish"


	14. Chapter 14: The Dark Past

The Normandy picked the shuttle up only moments later. The team walked slowly off the ship with Tali leaning on Shepard's shoulder laughing from some joke said before they got off. The elevator ride felt like the good old days. Garrus cracking jokes about quarians as Tali threatened him with her shotgun. Near-death experiences seemed to bring the memories back to the old team. The doors opened to the crew deck with Garrus getting pushed by Tali out the door.

"There you go you old bosh'tet!" Tali said laughing all the worth while.

"This isn't the last of me you dirty quarian!" Garrus said jokingly back to her.

The doors closed quietly as Shepard pressed one on the control panel. Tali wrapped her hand around Shepard's arm as Shepard placed his arm on her shoulder. Tali moved her head to his chest so she could listen to his heartbeat.

"How did we even get here?" Tali asked in a state of pure relaxation.

"Hmm. I'll have to think about that." Shepard replied.

"Make it quick, before I fall asleep." Tali said pressing her head harder into his chest.

"I can't make any promises." Shepard said, yawning in an exaggerated manner.

"Stop it Shepard!" Tali said pushing him softly.

The doors to the elevator opened revealing the soft, warm glow of the cabin's light. Both breathed out in complete relaxation. Shepard walked over to the bed and stared at it sleepily before he slipped the heavy armor pieces off of his tired shoulders. Tali sat down on the couch brushing off some left over dust that still sat on her suit.

Shepard pulled hard on the left arm guard that had been wedged into the locked position from the rocket explosion. He breathed out with frustration, but looked over in surprise when he felt the weight of his arm lessen and the eventual snap of the locks disengaging. Tali stood looking down at his arm, fresh with new scars that the medi-gel hadn't or couldn't heal. She traced each line, each scrape with two of her three fingers. She looked back up at Shepard as she slid the arm piece off of his arm.

He lifted his hand grabbing the outside of her visor, pulling it softly off. He set the mask down on the armor stand and looked into Tali's brilliant eyes. Tali enjoyed the look he gave her when she didn't have her mask on. It made her feel warmer, loved, appreciated. Tali could feel Shepard's hands sliding up the curves of her body from her thighs, up her waist, and up to the exterior of her mask. The sensors on her face were disengaged and the helmets exterior locks hissed open.

The helmet slid off and Shepard placed it next to the visor. Tali grabbed the underside of his chest piece and pulled it slowly off of him. Shepard's undershirt had stains of blood and sweat, making Tali flinch quickly. Shepard looked down and laughed at the condition of his shirt.

"I think I need to take a shower" Shepard said with eyes that were beginning to look more sleepy than loving.

Tali, too felt like she was about to collapse and doubted her abilities to engage in any love-making this night. She sighed in defeat, but continued to unclip and disengage her suit so she could at least be free from the infernal contraption. Shepard stood in the steaming show as the final pieces of her suit were removed.

She walked over to the shower door and opened and joined Shepard in the hot bath. She forgot about how she managed to relax after those tough missions without taking a shower. The water dripped soothingly down the curves in her face dripping from her chin. She closed her eyes as she moved further into the water, completely engulfing her body in the soothing water fall of heated tranquility. She breathed out in pleasure as the water ran between her toes and fingertips.

Shepard's back was completely torn apart. Large, jagged scars grew from his lower back and splintered out on the edges. Though most of the scars were easily hidden under the chiseled curves of Shepard's strong muscles, most stood out on the hills of the muscles. She wondered how his body felt. She wondered the pain that must be going through that ravaged body. She wondered how physically and emotionally he has been scarred. She began to wonder about his childhood in hopes that maybe he had a happier one.

"Shepard?" Tali asked softly.

"Yes Tali?" Shepard said with his back still turned to her.

"Tell me about Earth… Your childhood…" Tali asked.

Shepard stopped scrubbing his hair immediately. He turned slowly to her and she saw the sadness fill his eyes again.

"I don't think you want to hear about it." Shepard said turning back to finish washing.

"I do want to hear about it." Tali said, asserting herself.

Shepard stopped again and turned to her and breathed out, and he collected is thoughts for a moment.

"I don't want to hurt you with the story of my life." Shepard said staring into her eyes.

"I've told you about my life! I'm quarian. How bad could your life be compared to mine!" Tali said with anger seething through the cracks of her calm composure.

"I would rather be a quarian than relive those years!" Shepard said.

"You don't even know how its like to wake up every morning and live through the entire day worrying if your suit is completely sealed. Wondering when you will die from a simple infection!" Tali yelled.

Shepard breathed in and diverted his eyes from her piercing gaze.

"I don't want anybody to pity my life…" Shepard said with sadness that was unknown to Tali.

Who was this man? This sad and broken man standing before her. All fatigue left her as she questioned her actions in asking him this personal question.

"Just tell me…" Tali said, walking to Shepard's side.

"I was four when it happened…" Shepard began.

"Earth isn't that great place to be, or at least for the people who live in the lower sectors of the downtown main metropolis. My mother died at child birth, or at least that's what my father told me. He was killed when I was only four just for the few credits that he had made working the scarce factory jobs available. I was left alone and lost on the streets with no one to care for me. He tried to shield me from the cruelness of the world, but he was gone, and survival became my new caretaker.

I roamed the streets for over ten years. I learned every back-alley trick, and I even made a few of my own. I became caught up in another band of local orphans who called themselves the Reds. We stole so much though it was completely out of necessity. The group began to torment and blackmail people. They began to make profits from their underhanded operations. I left the group when I was fourteen.

The world's disregard for people like me strengthened my abilities even more. It honed my abilities and I began to focus my attention on learning the ways of my surroundings. I became the most feared kid in three sectors of the cities under-stories. I was faster and more agile than any other kid in any part of the city and began to gain support.

The next three years of my life I don't want to mention, but when I was seventeen, my life finally turned around. I decided to pick pocket the wealthiest looking man that walked past me. Luck would have it that that man was an Alliance officer, but not just any Alliance Officer, but a man called Hackett. He easily felt my hand delve inside his coat pocket and steal his credit chit. I ran for my life, but I couldn't shake him. I used every trick I learned to get away, but he read every move I threw at him. Eventually I was cornered."

"What did he do?" Tali asked completely enthralled by his story.

"He congratulated me, and offered me a chance to redeem myself. That was the day I joined the alliance. He didn't know how old I was so when he asked I told him that I was eighteen though the look in his eyes showed that he knew I was lying, but he went along with it.

I rose through the ranks of the Alliance faster than any other man had every done. I received honors on all my exams, physical and mental. I even signed up for a prototype biotic cybernetic program. I became even better, but my skill and talent and companionship never filled the hole in my heart. Then the battle on Akuze destroyed my entire outlook on life. I watched as my entire team was torn to pieces by a thresher maw. I killed the it as it chewed on the last man on my squad. I stood in the middle of that slaughter. Not even a single bullet in my gun so I could join them."

Shepard stopped talking and sucked in the small ounce of sadness that leaked through him.

"But that's all behind me now. I have a ship, a crew, friends, but what I'm most thankful for was meeting you."

Tali became heavy with sadness. She always viewed Shepard as a perfect man with a perfect life, but this ruined her mind. She wrapped her arms around him and pressed her ear against his chest to listen to his heart. It beat much slower than before. At least she understood the determination of her commander now. The reason he did suicide missions. The reason he valued the lives of his crew over his own. He has lost too much.

Shepard's cheerful disposition came back almost instantly. So fast in fact that Tali lost all sadness in the matter.

"Dang, we wasted nearly all the ships water." Shepard said happily.

"I hope we didn't kill the fish." Tali said with a large smile hiding the tears that were still falling from her eyes."

Shepard walked over to the side of the shower and poked his head around the corner. He gave Tali a thumbs up.

"They live to see another day." Shepard said as he slid through the door to put his clothes on.

He turned to see Tali standing wet and naked on the outside of the shower. She looked quite stunning. He picked up a towel and threw it over to her.

You might need this… You might catch a cold." Shepard said hiding the joke.

Tali laughed at the barely funny joke. The humor returning to the room felt better than that shower room. He tossed her a set of clothes that she rubbed her hand over. They were quite possible the softest material that she had ever felt.

"Shepard wha…" Tali began to ask, but Shepard broke her off.

"Just try them on." Shepard said as he crawled into bed.

They fit perfectly around every part of her body. They even had extra fabric around her shins to provide for the bend. They were one of the most comfortable things that she ever wore.

"What is this made of?" Tali asked spinning to make the shirt flair out.

"That is a secret I wish to keep." Shepard said giving her a smile.

"Come one Shepard…" Tali said annoyed.

"Fine, It's made out of my back-hair." Shepard said laughing hysterically after he finished.

Tali smiled and jumped on top of him on the bed. She too was laughing quite hysterically. She rolled off of him and buried herself under the covers. The bed felt warm and soft as she pressed herself against the warm and soft body of the man laying next her. She put her head against the back of his head and smelled the fragrance of his hair.

No… It couldn't be. She smelled again. There is no way that his hair could smell like that. Shepard turned to reveal a pristine flower of purple and white. The petals glistened in the soft light of the room almost like they were made of crystals or sprinkled with diamonds. The purple petal shifted hues and brightness when it turned in the light. The stem faded from white from the bottom to a soft scarlet at the top. It was beautiful.

"How? How? How did you get this?" Tali asked nearly jumping out of bed.

"Where do you think?" Shepard asked smiling happily up at her.

"But-but when did you? I-" Tali stuttered as she fumbled with the flower in her hands.

"I arranged to go with Legion two days ago." Shepard said smiling. "And tomorrow is your turn."

Tali's expression phased through five different looks of excitement. Tears of happiness filled her eyes as she landed on Shepard with a huge hug.

"Thank you Shepard." Tali said.

"I also have something to show you when we get there…" Shepard said hugging her more tightly and feeling her heart jump a beat at that news. It only made his smile intensify. "Just wait for tomorrow."


	15. Chapter 15: Return to Rannoch

_Shepard's surroundings were blurry with high contrasts of light and dark. The world around him was ablaze with tracer rounds and the yells of hearty soldiers. Shepard felt himself run behind a rock as the top of the rock exploded. He could hear the bullets whiz by the rock and hit with dull thuds into the sand bank behind him. Shepard tried to observe his surroundings, but his eyes were locked in a blurry tunnel vision._

_He watched one soldier run up next to him and yell something to him. Shepard could only hear a low murmur as the man's mouth moved. He watched as three bullets caught the man in the chest and head causing him to fall. He fell slowly, but too slowly for the gravity to be correct. Shepard paid no intention to this fault and grabbed the ground from the lifeless corpse in front of him and rose._

_The small crevice between the two rock faces was filled with Krogan Battlemasters. Their guns were red from the blood of all the victims. Shepard fired a burst into the crowd and watched as two krogans fell as two others replaced them in the formation. He crouched back down as the fire focused itself on him. Then he caught a dark shape from the corner of his eye. He turned with his vision a blur._

"_Tali… What are you doing here?" Shepard called forth to her._

_She had just risen to fire on them when she turned to look at Shepard. Her eyes showed her surprise of him being there. Shepard opened his mouth to say something just as he watched bullets shear through her suit sending a bloody spray to paint itself on the rocks behind her. He watched as she slowly fell behind the cover she had just come from._

_He looked at her as she fell. He felt himself screaming her name, but he couldn't hear anything over his hearts loud drum beat. He dove across the small gap to her side and lifted her head in his arms. He grabbed her mask and took it off to reveal her beautiful eyes. He wiped with blood from her face and tried to comfort her._

"_Tali! Shh… It's ok… It's ok… Tali stay with me!" Shepard said as tears filled his eyes and he felt himself begin to shake._

_She looked up at him with those magnificent eyes as she moved her hand slowly up to the side of his face._

"_Shepard…" she whispered. "I thought… I…" she coughed sending speckles of blood around her mouth. "I thought you died."_

_Shepard was losing all vision that he had as the tears threatened to blind his view of her. He wiped the blood from her mouth, but it only smeared._

"_Stop talking… I'm here for you… Just hold on!" Shepard said._

_He felt a strong push hit him followed by strong hands holding him down to the ground. He fought back against the hands, but there were too many. He turned his head and looked back at Tali who was now laying again. He watched as two krogans talked and pointed down at the quarian._

"_Don't you touch her!" Shepard roared from underneath the hands of five strong Krogans._

_They merely looked over at him and positioned their shotguns over the body. They smiled menacingly as they readied their shotguns. They watched as Shepard struggled helplessly under their power. The one Battlemaster put down his shotgun and motioned for another to come over. He was given the shotgun._

"_No! No, no, no! Please stop!" Shepard yelled desperately, but before he knew it he saw the end of the shotgun light up and Tali's legs jerk one last time. The shotgun blast was amplified in Shepard's ears. All sadness leaked out._

"_Nooo!" Shepard screamed as the world around him fell into darkness._

Shepard jumped out of bed covered in sweat. He almost screamed out and looked around the room regaining his bearings on the events that just happened in his head. Tali was already up feeding the fish causing her to jump a bit at the started Shepard.

"Shepard! What's wrong?" Tali asked, the concern burned through her voice as she ran to his side of the bed.

"A nightmare… It was just… a nightmare." Shepard said trying to catch his breath.

He buried his head in his hands trying to forget that nightmare, but it still rang loudly in his head. Tali wrapped her hands around Shepard trying to comfort him, something she thought she would never have to do. Shepard collected himself and regained his content smile.

"What time is it." Shepard asked trying to change the mood.

"Time for us to be on our way… Shepard." Tali said giving him a big grin.

"Well lets get ready then!" Shepard said jumping perfectly out of his bed.

Tali ran happily over to her suit and hastily began putting it back on as Shepard slipped his shirt on. They both dressed faster than they had ever dressed before, and both of them were in the elevator before an elcor could describe its satisfaction of opening a door for a blind turian.

Tali jittered the entire way down to the shuttle bay. She would look up at Shepard, then back to the ground, then at the door, then back to Shepard. Shepard kept his eyes straightforward trying not to look at the white and purple flower that Tali had hooked around the top section of her hood. It was a true symbol of the perfect figure wearing it and Shepard wanted to live in that moment when he revealed his plans to her.

The shuttle sat in the shuttle bay prepped and ready for departure. Shepard let Tali get on first before he entered with a smile. The shuttle ride was quiet and relaxing as Tali sat right next to Shepard with her arms wrapped around him. They began reminiscing about the years before.

"Remember when we first met Shepard?" Tali asked.

"I remember that day well," Shepard said smiling at the memory of the quarian being attacked and harassed by a turian mercenary hired to kill her.

"I never really told you how grateful I was that you helped me." Tali said looking up at the grinning face of Shepard. "The day my life got that much more… _interesting_."

Shepard loved it when she said the word "interesting" like that, and she knew it.

Even though those years were that chaotic, they managed to fall quite in love with her. Maybe they would have never of met, never have found each other, never would have fallen in love. Then again, maybe they would have.

The shuttle landed softly onto the planet of Rannoch. Tali looked over to Shepard to see what he was going to do. He sat there with a sly smile across his face.

"Are you going to open the door?" Tali asked.

"Are you ready for what's on the other side?" Shepard asked.

"Yes, Shepard. I am," Tali said bluntly.

They both stood up at the same time. Shepard positioned her so she was facing the doors to the shuttle. She crossed her hands in her lap and rubbed them together. Shepard smiled as he placed his hand on the panel.

"Ready?" Shepard asked.

Tali began to question how ready she was to see the quarian homeworld. She managed a quick nod of her head as she took a breath in and released it slowly. Shepard flipped the switch to the shuttle. He never broke his stare from Tali, waiting for the reaction.

She had to lift her hand to block the bright sun, but slowly dropped it, as she gasped at the scene in front of her. Shepard leaned against the bulkhead and let her cope with the amazement. She walked slowly out of the shuttle. Shepard followed her smiling in the beauty of the bright sun.

Foliage was everywhere. A million of the flower that Shepard picked glittered brilliantly in the sun. Shepard walked up behind her and grabbed her visor and popped it off. She acted worried at first, but realized that nothing could effect her, not here. She felt the wind blow over her face. She reached down and let her fingers slide through the tall grasses. She closed her eyes as she listened to the breeze and sounds of small animals.

Shepard grabbed her hand and pulled her along through the meadow towards a hill. After a small climb they reached the top of the hill. Tali's eyes were wide with amazement as she looked down at a large sea with waves crashing against the white rocks of the coast. She felt the mist sprinkle against her face from the sea-breeze.

Shepard grabbed her shoulders to direct her gaze to another hillside. Her hands instinctually rose to her mouth and tears filled her eyes as she saw a medium-sized, quarian architecture building resting on the hill.

"Tali?" Shepard asked as Tali turned slowly to him.

She kept looking up at the building glittering in the sun then back to Shepard. Their hands interlocked and their eyes locked in that moment.

"I've wanted to ask you something." Shepard said as he got down on his knee.

Tali's heart began skipping beats and her breathing became broken. This was just too real, too impossible. She tried to smile, but most control of the muscles in her face were shutting down as she readied for Shepard to say the lines she always wanted him to say.

"We've lived through impossible odds. We have saved the galaxy… twice. You have been there, every step of the way. You are my life and my soul, my happiness and my shield. You are the element zero to my drive core." Tali laughed at the ridiculous comparison. "You are my everything. You are my light in the darkness, and I never want to lose you, so…"

Tali felt her skin burn as the smile began to hurt her face, but she couldn't stop. She sucked in the tears that were now running down her face. Shepard's eyes never broke contact which made her feel warmer inside than any thermo-heater could produce.

"…Will you marry me?" Shepard said at last.

The emotions burned through Tali's heart and burned every fabric of her soul. She felt herself laugh happily and jump slightly as the words caressed her eardrums. The tears began to flow again as she gathered herself together to say the single word she had repeated in her head the whole trip.

"Yes!" Tali squealed jumping as she said it.

Shepard reached into his pocket and pulled out a crimson ring with a brilliant violet gem shimmering proudly on top. She stared at the brilliance of the glittering gem as it shimmered in the sun with the waves of the sea behind it distorted to a nice kaleidoscope effect. Tali reached out to it, but pulled slightly away from it, afraid to touch it. Shepard pushed it forwards and slipped it onto her center finger.

She started shaking again as the constriction of a ring on her finger warmed her heart. She looked down to Shepard who still stared at her. She fell forwards wrapping her arms tightly around him crying deeply into his shoulder.

"Thank you Shepard!" Tali squealed as she stared out at the flowing, glittering sea. She breathed out as the tears again began to build in her eyes.

"No, Tali. Thank you." Shepard said strengthening his embrace of her.

They held each other for an eternity on that grassy hill. The sounds of nature chirping happily in the wind, the breeze softly blowing through the grass making it appear that an invisible giant was running its hand over it.

They finally rose from their eternal embrace, locking their hands together in an unbreakable lattice. They made their way to the house as Tali's breathing became heavier with each step to the magnificent structure. Each step caused her heart to skip. Each step made her more nervous. Each step made her forget the worries of her suit.

The building stood magnificently on the hill with large sloping arcs of stone centered on the two outside walls. Vines had already scaled the wall on one side and bloomed in magnificent crimson flowers with bright yellow buds. The roof was constructed of decorated glass that allowed the viewer inside to see out while the peering eyes of satellites could not intrude.

Markings on the walls and door were of quarian characters. The stone used was similar to the stone found on the coastline, shimmering with a white smooth stone. The door was elevated up from the ground causing an ever widening staircase to be stretched forth from it.

They made their way up the staircase an entered to house. Tali's eyes widened even further from the architecture of the interior.

The initial room was large with open archways leading to the adjacent rooms. A decorated fountain bubbled peacefully in the shape of the two Normandies overlapping each other. The ceiling of the room allowed the sun to light the main room with a soft glow as light diffused through the special plated glass. The other rooms were decorated with flowing cloths and fabric designs known among most quarian suit makers.

Tali stumbled through most rooms staring wide eyed and gaping at the time and detail placed in its construction. She walked over to the fountain and read the small inscription etched at the bottom on a small gold plaque.

"_I promised you a house on our homeworld. A house on a hill overlooking the beauty of Rannoch. I did not forget my promise. I will always love you. Forever._"

_Your loving father, Rael'Zorah_.

She rested herself on her hands after she finished reading it.

"Why didn't you tell me about this Father? Why?" she whispered to herself.

She continued on through the house, descending its spiral staircase. The basement of the house had tables and compartments strewn about the large, single workshop. She breathed out as she let her hands run over the pieces of old machines and hardware. She caught sight of a VI projector laying on the corner of the end table. She walked over to it and stared at it.

"Play it…" Shepard said softly as he lounged against the side of the stairs.

She reluctantly pressed play. A hologram of her father zoomed onto the table and began to speak.

"Tali. If you are watching this then I am dead, or have been severely incapacitated. I have been building this house in secret on our homeworld for quite some time, under the view of the admiralty board, but more importantly, under the eyes of the geth. I have left instructions for your Commander Shepard, who I knew you were fond of, and that I knew he would keep my secret safe. The construction at the time of this message is about only 90% complete, and we still need to create a centerpiece for the main room. Tali… I'm sorry if I haven't shown enough love to you, but I assure you that this was going to be my swan song. I'm sorry I couldn't be here for you Tali. I love you." -End of Transmission-

Tali stood completely still at her side of the table. The smile had completely faded as tears of sadness began to take over. She sat slowly on the chair behind her and stared at the small VI in front of her. Shepard let her think about it. He let her cope with the message. She felt the tear fall from her cheek breaking her of the spell. She reached up and wiped her cheek and looked at the wetness in her glove.

She rose and walked past Shepard back up the stairs. Shepard heard the door close before he decided to go check on her. By the time he made it to the door she was already halfway to the coast.


	16. Chapter 16: Acceptance

Shepard ran briskly over the crest of the hill catching sight of Tali climbing over the rocks. He picked up his pace running down the embankment to the sighing coastline.

"Tali!" Shepard yelled raising his hand to his mouth to amplify his voice.

He got no response as a wave crashed into the rocks directly in front of him sending a heavy mist to rise into the air. A quick sea breeze whipped the mist into intricate swirls as Shepard looked around. The helmet narrowed his view and stifled his breathing. He disregarded all caution he was currently taking and quickly ripped the helmet off.

"TALI!" Shepard yelled again spinning as he scanned the rocks.

Another wave crashed into the rocks. Shepard climbed up onto the rocks and jumped from the rocks quickly looking around. Every step, every leap across each gap and jut in the rocks he felt himself call for her. Each time he was greeted by the roar of the waves. He circled his path to stretch around the cliff side.

"TA-LI!" Shepard yelled again beginning to become worried that she slipped and fell.

He circled around the cliff and almost missed the quiet sobbing in one of the dark corners of the cliff. He slowed and turned his attention to the darkness. The wind picked up and blew his hair around on his head as he was hit with another misting from another large wave.

"Tali?" Shepard asked as he slowly walked into the darkness.

His eyes adjusted to the darkness and he caught sight of Tali sitting with her knees pulled up and her head buried in her legs. She slowly jerked as heavy sobs seeped from her body and jagged her breathing. Shepard approached her and sat beside her. He simply put his arm around her and held her close to him. She forced her weight onto him as she buried her head into his suit, wrapping her arms tightly around him.

"Why did you bring me here Shepard? Why show me all these memories?" Tali asked muffled slightly by Shepard's armor.

"I brought you here to heal…" Shepard said bring his arms tighter around her. He lifted one of his legs so she could rest more comfortably on him.

She broke her embrace and looked at her hand that sparkled with the purple stone. The tears in her eyes began to well up again and her breathing began sounding heavy again as she pulled the ring off and held it to Shepard.

"I'm not right for you… I won't be able to make you happy… I just can't…" Tali said as the ring sat loosely in the palm of her hand.

"I know," Shepard said as he reached for the ring, but instead of grabbing the ring he put his hand around her hand and closed it around the ring. "I know you don't feel that you are able to do this, but we have been here before. We have made it work. You are everything to me Tali. You are letting your sadness cause you to doubt yourself. Look into my eyes and tell me that you don't want to marry me." Shepard said with an unfaltering calm.

Tali managed to lift her head, but she didn't directly look him in the eyes. She kept her eyes averted as another tear fell from her eyes. She breathed out slowly and blinked. During the blink, she moved her eyes over to Shepard's eyes. All the doubt that she had instantly fled from her body as those eyes purged her system, but she didn't feel happy, not at first. Instead she was filled with guilt. How could she put Shepard through this? Why did she take the ring off? Why did she run away from him? Was she afraid? Afraid of what?

The questions whizzed through her mind. She couldn't say anything while her eyes were perpetually locked with those deep, knowing brown eyes. How could he use his eyes like that? Tali's lip quivered only slightly after she began to feel stupid for all of this.

"I'm being stupid again. Selfish." She breathed out in exasperation as she brought one hand up to wipe the moisture from around her eyes. "I just don't know what to do anymore."

Shepard sat staring at Tali. He finally blinked causing a wide loving smile to spread across his face as he stood up still holding Tali's hands. She rose with him.

"C'mon _Mrs._ Tali'Zorah," Shepard said with strengthened confidence.

The way he said it rang a bell in Tali. The word echoed in her head. Mrs.. The word warmed her very soul. She, a simple quarian, marrying the greatest man in the galaxy. The smile spread across her face as she felt Shepard pull her out to the sun. The warmth of the sun on her skin only added to the symbolism playing out in her head. Shepard seemed completely aware of where he was going. He walked backwards keeping eye contact with Tali as they walked.

The soft sunlight behind Shepard as the sea crashed and whipped around them nearly stopped her heart. If any heaven or afterlife existed, this would be it. She couldn't even feel her legs anymore as she was carried across the rocks by Shepard's intense loving stare. He felt the stare look straight into her soul. She also came to realize the missing helmet of Shepard.

Her eyes widened at the discovery of his missing helmet, and she opened her mouth to say something but decided against it. She was lost in this perfect paradise. The sea crashed against the rocks like a beat of a drum. The waves receded as a woman would sigh as she fell into a dream. Instead of walking to the house they made their way back to the shuttle.

She only became aware that she was on the shuttle when the doors closed and she had lost sight of Shepard's eyes. She panicked slightly as she remembered the ring she had torn from her finger, but stopped when she felt the constriction around her finger. "What are you doing Tali?" Tali thought to herself. She rested her weight to the side and felt something on the seat next to her. She lifted it as her eyes adjusted to the dark. It was her visor. She held it and stared at it for the longest time. Staring, glaring at the monstrosity that shielded her from everyone's view. Shunned her from society. She accepted the facts as she sealed it back over her face and latching it to the helmet as she felt the engines roar to life.

The shuttle ride, for the most part, remained quiet. Tali rubbed her hands together in her lap while she sat and stared over at Shepard who sat across from her. She would bring up her head and look at him, but turn when her face burned with embarrassment. She finally fortified her wits and bolstered her emotions to try to start a conversation.

"Shepard?" she asked lightly.

"Yes, Tali?" Shepard asked as he leaned forwards.

"I wanted to thank you for showing me that. It was… nice. It was just a bit much for me, and I couldn't take it all in, but it was really beautiful and nice, don't get me wrong, I'm really glad you took me, and what you did for me," Tali said as she lifted her hand up to present the ever-shimmering rock, "And, and, I'm babbling again." She gave a small, unsure giggle.

"Tali. I understand. I know how hard that must have been, but after I received the automated message from Rael'Zorah, I knew what I had to do." Shepard said, smiling the entire time. "You needed to know this. You needed to see with your own eyes what Rael did for you."

"I wish he would have just told me…" Tali said as her chin dropped again to the floor.

"He was…" Shepard responded simply as he rose and repositioned himself beside Tali.

Tali lifted her head and looked at Shepard. She attempted to divert her gaze, but managed to only move her head a little more than an inch.

"Thank you Shepard. You don't know how… unstable I've been," Tali said nodding with her own statement.

"Now we can deal with your problems… together," Shepard said.

This made Tali smile and blush under her suit. She wanted him to see how happy she was. The way his words caressed her aching heart brought all the soothing warmth back. She felt herself want to start talking, but instead she fell into his eyes like she always did. It was her safe haven, her paradise, her sanctuary. She wrapped her hands around Shepard so hard that the flower that she had stuffed in her helmet was jolted loose. She watched it fall onto Shepard's lap.

All of her memories returned of their stay at Rannoch. The meadows teemed with those flowers. She remembered the sighing of the waves and the singing of the wind. The way the sun created multilayered rainbows in the wave-cast mist. She barely noticed the jerk as the Normandy picked them up.

Shepard disembarked from the ship with Tali still wrapped around him. She weighed him down and through him off balance while he made his way down the walkway; something he wasn't going to deal with. He bent down and hoisted Tali up into his arms. She giggled as she put her arms around Shepard's neck.

"That was the best date I've been on!" Tali giggled to Shepard.

"I don't know… You cried almost the entire time." Shepard said.

"It was an overwhelming experience that's all." Tali said.

Miranda stood staring angrily out the top window looking into the docking bay. She trusted Shepard and would give her life at any order that he would give her, but this was too much.

"Sleeping and proposing with a member of the crew… a quarian even!" Miranda said to herself as she watched Shepard spin around with Tali in his hands.

She clenched her fists as she stared into that bay.

"He's got a mission to do! He doesn't have time to go on dates and get married! He's acting like the Reapers are gone! This isn't like Shepard at all!" Miranda said slowly gaining in volume.

She stared angrily out the window, but turned and sighed.

"What are you doing, Miranda? He's been through a lot. He's even helped you with your personal problems. Let him live a little." She said to herself.

She stared through the glass a long time later, but eventual began to look at the reflection in the glass. Her face was wet with tears. She wiped them away and shifted her weight to one leg as she crossed her arms.

"No. No, I'm not sad that he didn't love me…" As the words escaped her mouth she felt the truth try to burst out of her.

She couldn't stand it anymore and walked onto the elevator to return to her deck. The elevator ride up to the next floor gave her time to compose herself. When the door opened, Garrus was standing there. He was quite surprised to see her.

"I-I was j-just looking for you," Garrus stuttered.

Miranda stared into the eyes of the Turian and couldn't believe what she saw behind those eyes.

"Garrus… I think we should talk about this in my room." Miranda said.

Garrus looked completely flabbergasted as his eyes nearly popped out of his head. His mandibles flared momentarily as he searched for words, but gave up and courteously let h**er walk past him as he followed.**


	17. Chapter 17: Rain

Shepard set Tali back onto the ground, glad she was out of her slump. He watched as she ran, though it almost mimicked dancing, away from him to return to her post that she had neglected for quite some time. He had caught sight of Miranda standing up on the balcony watching him and knew that he would have to have a talk with her though he wasn't rushing it. He walked slowly up the stairs to the top of the engineering platform and almost thought about poking in behind Tali and scaring her before he traveled up to have his "pleasant" chat with Miranda.

The doors beeped open as Shepard walked out of the elevator as he made his way over to Miranda's quarters. He was surprised to see Thane standing attentively outside the door.

"What are you doing here Thane?" Shepard asked curiously.

"To be honest, Shepard, I don't know the details. I was told to stand here and make sure no one entered until they finished," Thane stated.

"Who's 'they'?" Shepard asked raising an eyebrow.

"I don't know if I'm at liberty to say," Thane said.

"Tell me." Shepard said bluntly.

Before Thane could say anything, Miranda's door opened with Garrus walking out. He looked a bit surprised to see Shepard standing there, and he tried to act like nothing happened, but his tone made it just the more obvious.

"Shepard. I didn't think you were back yet. How was your date?" Garrus asked.

"It was amazing, but right now I'm more concerned with you… and Miranda it would seem." Shepard said.

"It's nothing commander," came Miranda's voice from inside the room. She emerged moments later at the door.

"Define 'nothing'," Shepard said.

"We were just talking," Miranda said with a tone that could easily pass off as the truth.

"Then how do you explain your 'armed' guard?" Shepard inquired looking over to Thane who smiled from the small joke.

"It was 'private'," Miranda said gaining a more agitated tone.

"Well, I can't argue with that though your relationship with Garrus is gaining my attention," Shepard said with the greatest of all grins.

Miranda's bottom jaw nearly fell through the floor. She looked over to Garrus who had stopped dead in his tracks. Her face burned a fiery red as she slowly turned to regard Shepard who seemed quite amused.

"Why would you ever say that!?" Miranda asked too quickly.

"I guessed, and, from how you two are acting, I would be safe to assume that I am indeed correct in my hypothesis…" Shepard said as he turned to Thane. "Shall we go my dear Watson?"

"Right away Holmes," Thane said not missing a beat.

Miranda and Garrus watched as they both walked away, completely dumbfounded. They didn't know who to look at, each other or the strange pair that made their way into the life support room. Shepard and Thane almost died from laughter once they entered the safety of the room.

"I knew I could count on you!" Shepard said as he poured some brandy out to celebrate.

"Your welcome Commander," Thane said with a large smile on his face, a smile that he had never felt for a long time. " but I do have to ask… How did you know they liked each other to begin with to even have me confirm your suspicions?"

"They were made for each other… It was inevitable," Shepard said taking a long sip of his brandy. "Plus, Garrus has the prettiest face in the crew, who wouldn't fall for that doll face?" Shepard asked with perfect sarcasm.

"I guess your right…" Thane said as he took another sip of his brandy that Shepard had laid out for him.

"Commander!" came Joker's voice from the intercom.

"What is it Joker?" Shepard asked taking a more serious tone.

"Distress beacon from Pragia in the Nubian Expanse…" Joker relayed.

"Pragia? Isn't that where we blew up the base for Jack?" Shepard asked.

"I believe so Commander." Joker added.

"I thought it was deserted?" Shepard asked.

"It was, and this is the part that your going to love… the beacon has a Cerberus signature." Joker said.

Shepard thought about it for some time and even looked over at Thane who merely shrugged. He walked out the door and stepped into the elevator.

"Joker, plot in the course. I'll be up soon." Shepard said as he pressed the button for engineering.

He walked out of the elevator and found Jack already gearing up at the top of the stairs.

"I can't believe that those assholes are trying to scrounge something from the base that I blew to hell. Hell, I bet their making another facility so they can start up the tests again." Jack said as she turned to regard Shepard.

"That's why I'm bringing you," Shepard said.

"I wasn't going to give you a choice in the matter anyways, Shepard," Jack said as a rare smile spread across her face.

Shepard turned back around and returned to the elevator. He was aching for some more action and he hoped that it wouldn't be too dangerous like last time.

The Normandy went into orbit a few hours later with a shuttle with Shepard, Tali, and Jack, landed on the planet. They landed in the crater that the explosion had created, although the forest had already reclaimed nearly half of it. The signal was not far from the landing zone, but through the thick forest it was going to be quite a hike.

"Shit," Jack said as she stared at the thick vines and trees that lay in her path.

"Shepard pulled a machete out of his pack. Luckily he had invested in buying the plasma reinforced duel-coated platinum machetes. He held the semi-transparent up in the rain and watched as the rain bent behind the machete. He passed the others out and they began hacking through the intense foliage.

The plasma sheathing helped in cutting through the heavy foliage. Shepard was thankful that the thick trees blocked most of the rain from hitting them though he cursed under his breath at the shear amount of vines and thick overhangs of branches and thick grasses. The sounds of equal frustration and grunts from his teammates, all consisting of women really didn't help Shepard's slowly degenerating mood, but his moral code drove him to try to investigate the means of the distress.

The trees broke off revealing a small opening in the thick entrapment. In the center of the clearing was a Cerberus shuttle that had a huge slash across the side. They took out their weapons and cautiously approached the sight. Shepard could smell a foul odor as he walked ever closer to the shuttle. Shepard rounded the corner of the ship to find what he feared.

The amount of blood that was in the shuttle was colossal as was the number of broken bodies. Shepard brought his arm up to his nose to block the foul odor, but the dampness of his suit made it hard. He looked over the decaying corpses. Most of the bodies were mostly in tact, but others had been completely ripped apart with limbs thrown around and others laying with their entrails oozing out of their upper half of their body.

"Keelah Shepard. What did this?" Tali asked thankful that the air purifiers eliminated the smell.

"I don't kno…" Shepard was cut off as the ground began to shake.

Shepard lost his balance and fell into one of the bodies that had been impaled across one of the broken pipes. The body broke apart and covered Shepard in a thick bloody mess. He turned and fought through the smell long enough to see the ground outside erupt. A large snakelike creature burst from the ground, and began wrapping itself around the ship.

Tali and Jack immediately jumped into the stinking shuttle with Shepard and turned with fear apparent on their faces.

"What the hell was that?!" Jack screamed.

"I don't know!" Shepard yelled over the loud rumbling.

As suddenly as it began, it stopped. The rain clanked against the hull of the shuttle as the team stood silently in the shuttle. Shepard took a step forwards out of the shuttle to look around. The storm had picked up and the wind started whipping violently. Thunder exploded in the air as long jagged arms of lightening reached into the thick forest. It became incredibly dark with the only source of light the small suit lights and the occasional lightning flash.

He stepped further out of the shuttle and slowly scanned all around him for the weird reptilian beast. He caught sight of something run across the ground and flipped his attention just in time for a smaller snakelike monster to latch its powerful jaws around Shepard's chest. Shepard held onto the one end of its jaw as he struggled to free his other hand. He managed to slip it free and place an inferno shell straight into the beast's eye. He watched as the brain popped and fizzled in its skull.

He turned to the team who had jumped partially out of the shuttle to aide him, but he waved them to get back into the shuttle as he ran back with his arm holding his side. He ran into the shuttle and slouched into a seated position in an area that didn't have much blood around it. He lifted his hand to see blood on his hand. Tali caught sight of the blood and immediately began scanning his wounds.

"It's only a minor wound. Well, minor for you that is…' Tali said as she rose from Shepard.

Shepard laughed, but his laugh was drowned by the large crack of lightning. He looked back to the outside where the body of the snake creature was still popping and fizzing, even though it was a downpour. After his suit injected the correct amount of medi-gel on the wound, and it stitched up properly, Shepard was back on his feet and trying to figure out how he could get them out of this predicament.

They couldn't run because the forest was too thick, and if they fought, they would most likely die. Shepard weighted the plans as Jack and Tali stood in waiting of his command.

"We are going to have to fight," Shepard said finally.

"In this?!" Jack asked throwing her hand over to the shuttle's opening.

"We have to…" Shepard said staring at them hard and long.

"Well… This is going to be fun," Jack said.

"It's too dark out there to see where those monsters are!" Tali yelled.

"There's not much we can do about that," Shepard said.

"I might be able to reroute power in the shuttle to give us some lighting," Tali said motioning to the controls of the ship.

"That's great!" Shepard said. "Jack. Can you clear the rain for a second so that I can go grab the body so we can see what were dealing with?"

Jack turned and stared at the wall of water in front of her. She closed her eyes as the blue energy seeped its way through her skin causing her to glow in an ominous blue light. The edges of the blue flared to a slight white as she moved her hands causing the energy to project out. The rain landed in the shield and slid off around it. The shield stretched the entire distance to the body, but Shepard could see that she was straining to keep the field up. He jolted across the short expanse and grabbed the corpse by the tail and quickly dragged it back to the ship. Happily the shield also deflected two other snakes from getting him.

The body steamed inside the shuttle. Shepard stood over it and examined the snakes unique features. The snakes jawbone was completely exposed showing a large array of sharp pointed teeth and two very large and very dangerous looking fangs. The thought alone made the still tender wounds on Shepard's side to tingle. The eye that survived was far set back in its head while a strong globe eyelid swung from the top. The face was ugly with jagged bones and sharp spines that spiraled down the creatures long tubular body. The tail tapered off into a long spear-like shape. The fire appeared to have only burned the contents of the skull showing how sealed off the creatures body was. This creature was armored to the bone and armed to the teeth. It appeared to be a shear abomination to be on such a planet, yet here it lay before him.

Tali worked furiously through the wiring and tubes of the ship's main power coupling. Most of the noise was drowned out by the loud clatter of the ever worsening rainfall. Eventually she slid from her workstation and stood up and flipped a few switches on the panel. Nothing worked. Her eyes narrowed as she gave a swift kick to the panel. Immediately afterwards the lights all clicked on though sadly the engines did not.

"The power core can only maintain the lights to the craft for a good three hours before we run completely out of power," Tali stated as she looked over the power readouts.

"I hope we won't be here that long, but if we must, we will find a way," Shepard said as he lifted his assault rifle and turned to the torrent that was still waging outside.


	18. Chapter 18: Stranded

They rain continued to fall over the downed shuttle that Shepard, Tali, and Jack were precariously hidden. Tali reached over and flipped the lights to the shuttle on and arranged them to the area directly behind the shuttle, the area where most of the fighting was to take place. Jack's hand shook ever so slightly as she loaded a fresh thermal clip into her pistol, a shake that only Shepard caught.

Every person breathed out as they readied themselves for the coming battle. Shepard was the first to walk forwards, followed by Jack then Tali. They walked to the center of the lights and spun slowly around gaining all angles of their battle field. A flash of lightning caught the first snake who had launched itself into the air. The water reflected off of its edges as the mouth instantly flew open. Jack smashed its skull with a single a punch. The body of the snake twitched though it was already dead.

They breathed out and continued their defensive circle. Spinning and turning providing cover for the other teammates behind him. Shepard's visor gave a detailed contour image of his surroundings. He quickly caught two snakes who had just exited from the forests edge, and fired two shots with his hand cannon disintegrating their skulls instantly. The readings ceased as the final drips of life poured from their open heads.

Tali pulled her knife from her left leg sheath and held it perpendicular to her pistol. She squinted through the torrent of rain to the very edge of the darkness. She waited for any signs of movement. The sounds of rain became silent to her as her focus became absolute. The outlines of the trees became more clear and the rain appeared to slow. A flash of lightning showed the leaping form of another snake. She caught the snake by the neck with her knife, the snakes momentum drove the blade down its body causing it to fall in half on the other side.

The ground began to shake. The entire crew stumbled only slightly as the ground not far into the woods exploded as a large dark shape rose into the air. A flash of lightning showed the true face of the beast. It was a large snake-like creature with a head that looked like a bud from a flower. From what they could see, it was green and had a rigid, thorn like body. Its two outer arms folded out making it appear to be a large flower, but they instantly retracted into sharp claws.

"Thresher maw!" Jack yelled.

"It doesn't look like any thresher maw I've seen!" Shepard yelled.

"It must have mutated to have better survive on this planet," Tali answered.

"Is that good or bad?" Shepard asked as he backed up slowly from the looming beast.

"This is an incredibly hostile world!" Jack yelled with fear growing in her eyes as the thresher maw continued to stretch out of the ground.

"Bad then!" Shepard yelled as they all turned towards the direction to their own shuttle.

The adrenaline picked up in their bloodstreams as they ran headlong into the dense forest. Shepard couldn't figure out if the rumbling was from the thunder, his heart, or the thresher maw running after him. His question was answered moments later when a sharp claw just missed him. The shear shockwave of the stab caused Shepard to stumble, but his momentum was not lost. He positioned his gun over his shoulder firing blindly at the large target behind him though he knew the thick skin along with the several mutations of the thresher maw had made it nearly invulnerable to anything.

Jack had taken point and ran through the trees slashing wildly with her plasma machete. Tali ran in between Shepard and Tali and at times looked over her shoulder to see the trees disappear behind her under a large dark veil. She quickly summoned Chitika as she ran in hopes that a distraction could be made. Chitika flew right in front of the Thresher maw's eyes then flew into the sky. The maw stopped momentarily as it hurled a large pod off of its back. Chitika was destroyed almost instantaneously.

The forest suddenly cleared and they could see the shuttle. They ran for it, but Shepard veered off and ran away from the shuttle. Tali ran after him. Their was no way she was going to lose him again from some suicidal act of bravery.

"Tali! No! Get to the ship!" Shepard yelled at her.

"I'm not losing you again Shepard!" She yelled back.

They both heard the engines to the shuttle roar to life.

"Tali! Get to the ship now!" Shepard commanded.

"Never!" Tali retorted.

They heard the thrusters blast to life and the squeal of the ship begin to ascend.

"What is Jack doing?" Shepard yelled as another close claw missed him.

"Keelah! The ship is still in auto-pilot!" Tali said nearly stopping to run back to the ship, but the tree beside her melted away as a large glob of acid collided with it.

"That means…" Shepard began.

"She's going to be leaving us here." Tali finished.

"Get back to the other shuttle, now!" Shepard yelled.

"But it doesn't have enough…" Tali argued.

"Now!" Shepard yelled angrily.

They ran through the forest interweaving around trees and crossing their paths to confuse the thresher maw. Luckily it worked as the thresher maw slowed down trying to follow both of their movements. This gave them enough time to get to the second clearing where the shuttle still sat with its lights on.

"Tali! I need you to rig the core to explode!" Shepard yelled pointing to the open hatch of the shuttle.

She ran over without question as Shepard continued to draw the thresher maw to where he was standing. The fact that her soon to be husband was running around a ship that she was rigging to explode from a giant monster that threatened to kill them both, made Tali quite nervous. Her years of training luckily helped steady her hands as she struggled to connect the fuel relays and fusion core couplings to dangerous areas on the ship. The red light confirmed her job had been completed and she ran over to join Shepard.

"How much time do we have?" Shepard asked completely out of breath.

"I would say only fifteen seconds tops," Tali answered.

She shoved her hard into the forest beside him as he turned sharply back to the ship. He slid on the wet grass under the wing of the shuttle and immediately ran again. The thresher maw had reached its head down believing that its prey had fallen, but only jammed its head under the wing of the ship.

Tali stood back up and turned to the shuttle as she watched it violently explode sending large pieces ship flying through the air like deadly shrapnel. One piece barely missed her causing her to dive behind a nearby tree and put her hands around her sound sensors, as the whole core continued to erupt as a large chain reaction began to activate. She curled her legs up to herself and shook as it continued to explode. A chunk of the wing launched itself into the tree Tali was behind causing the tree to shoot back and hit Tali in the back of the head hard. The world around her faded into darkness as she fell forwards. She managed to look over at the destruction of the shuttle to see the top half of the thresher maw burn and pop, the head was clearly missing. The world blurred and went black before she even hit the ground.

* * *

The Normandy picked up Jack's vessel. Jack ran off the shuttle and instantly yelled into the intercom of the ship.

"We have to go back!" Jack yelled.

"Why did you forget something?" Joker teased, still unaware of the circumstances.

"Listen moron! Shepard and Tali are still on that hellhole! We were ambushed by a thresher maw and the damn auto-pilot took me back!" Jack yelled into the intercom.

Joker's voice took a more concerned tone. "Right away, we need to…" The ship rocked violently.

"What the hell was that!" Jack screamed.

"We are under attack! Blood pack insignia! They must have received the beacon too!" Joker yelled. "Taking evasive action!"

The Normandy banked hard to the right as Joker pressed the ship to its limits. The other ship flew past them and was in the act of turning around to begin a second run, but Joker had already lined the ship up against the Normandy's main cannon. The beam particle blasted into the hull of the ship causing the ships to lurch under stress. A large shockwave of mass effect energy shot forth and hit the Normandy full force. No structural damage was done to the ship, but the electronics were severely crippled.

The Normandy crew stood in complete darkness. The red emergency lights flipped on. Jack looked around the dead silent ship. She turned back to the shuttle and flipped a few switches. Dead.

"Joker?" She asked into the intercom, but nothing responded. She ran up the first flight of stairs and nearly ran into Grunt. "What's going on?" Jack asked.

"A glorious battle!" Grunt stated happily slamming his fists together.

She couldn't deal with this idiot. She ran hard to the ducts so she could get to the bridge. She ran through the dark hallways and finally made her way to the helm. Joker was furiously rebooting the system and scanning pages of data. EDI's image flickered weakly beside Joker with broken sounds coming from it.

"Joker! What happened?" Jack demanded angrily.

"The ship had an EMP charge loaded into the launch bay. It caused a large shockwave. All the electronics on the ship are mostly undamaged and should be up and running in a few hours." Joker replied without missing a beat of his work.

"When will the shuttle be ready to go back!" Jack yelled.

"The shuttle's electronics are fried and sadly our best engineer was left on the planet below us." Joker said shooting a look back at Jack.

"What!? You think I left them there!?" Jack roared.

"We are going to find a repair depot so they can repair the shuttle." Joker said ignoring her outburst.

"And how long might that be?" Jack asked skeptically.

"At least two weeks… maybe more." Joker responded.

Jack looked out at the horizon of the planet. A small flash of guilt swept over her as she considered the fates of Shepard and Tali who were most likely killed by the thresher maw by now. She turned and slowly walked over to a side chair and sat down and buried her head in her hands. She slammed her fist against the side causing a small dent to be made. Joker turned to her.

"Sure dent the ship! That will definitely make the repairs to the ship go faster!" Joker roared.

Jack gave him a dirty look as she bent over and bent the dent out again so it was fixed. She left the cockpit and walked back to Mordin's lab to go back to her small hole. She wasn't going to be dealing with this. She worried behind her anger the fates of her commander and of the quarian Tali. The thought and guilt caused her to toss and turn in her bed; denying her any sleep.


	19. Chapter 19: Aftermath

Tali opened her eyes slowly, her vision blurry from the slight concussion. Her suit was dripping with water as she rose and looked around. The sun was out and the shear destruction that lay in the forest clearing came into full scope. A large black crater with still burning shards of metal lay around smoldering and fizzling softly.

The large plant-like thresher maw lay completely still with the one whole side of it missing. She watched as the green slimy blood slowly oozed out of the large chunk. Flies-like bugs had already took residence in this new large food complex, and they buzzed happily around the large stinking corpse.

Tali's head echoed with the slightest noise and her vision remained a blurry mess. She put her hands on her head and looked back to the tree she had taken refuge behind. A large sharp piece of the shuttle's wing had embedded itself about halfway into the tree. She tried to retrace the events backwards in her head.

"I woke up here… because I was hiding here when that piece of metal hit the tree… but… how did I…" The memory of the night before flooded into her mind and her eyes widened. "Shepard!"

She ran as fast as her wobbly, aching legs could carry her. Every nerve in her knees tore violently at each step. The pain told her that she needed to sit down and rest, but her heart pushed her on. She ran to the large body of the thresher maw and followed its body to the large burnt crater. By the size of the crater, nothing would have even been left of Shepard if he took cover on the other side of the shuttle. She looked around trying to hold as much optimism as she could, but she felt it begin to falter.

The large chunks of random debris with mixed slabs of meat and bone made searching from where she was at that much harder. She scanned over the tall grass looking, hoping, praying for anything. She caught sight of something hidden in the grass. She ran over to it, breathing heavily as tears threatened to tear her apart. The sight that lay before her didn't help her fragile composure.

Shepard was laying face down in the dirt with a large piece of metal protruding from his arm. She breathed in and held her arm out. Her heart raced and beat faster and faster as she stared at the impaled body laying before her. She turned from it and nearly let her legs give way, but a low groan behind her brought back all her strength. She quickly turned to see Shepard slowly turning over. She reached out and stopped him from turning all the way.

"Tali…" Shepard asked weakly.

"Yes I'm here!" Tali said nearly jumping at hearing her name.

"Good… Is it dead?" Shepard asked trying again to turn to her though she stopped him again.

"Yes it's dead. You blew half its head off!" Tali said with a giggle trying to change the mood.

Shepard laughed which quickly transformed into a fit of coughing.

"Sit me up," Shepard said.

"You didn't make it out of that battle completely unharmed…" Tali said as she looked at the bleeding wound.

"How bad could it be?" Shepard asked throwing her a disarming smile.

"Well… You have a three foot long jagged piece of metal in your arm," Tali said depressingly.

"And?" Shepard asked.

"It's definitely going to become infected," Tali added smiling under her helmet at the stubborn commander.

"Is that all? I thought it cut my balls off or something!" Shepard joked.

"Well…" Tali teased.

Shepard's voice took a more concerned tone. "It didn't cut my balls off did it?"

"I don't know… Do you want me to check?" Tali teased again, laughing hard at her own joke.

"Go right ahead though I don't think I'm in any shape to do anything," Shepard teased again.

"I'm going to have to pull the metal out…" Tali stated with a more serious tone.

Shepard merely nodded and turned away from his arm. Tali grabbed the rough edges of the metal. Even those slight movements caused Shepard to cringe. She felt her body resist against pulling it out. She didn't want to hurt Shepard, but she knew that if she didn't he was going to die.

"Ready?" She asked him.

"Do it!" Shepard yelled.

She yanked on the large piece of shrapnel. She felt it grind past his bone, and she heard the tear of his muscles. It made her sick, but she never stopped pulling. Shepard screamed and roared with pain, but sighed out as the metal left his arm completely. He slumped over as the pain caused him to pass out. Tali was again set alone in the forest. She quickly tore a piece of her hood off, the piece she had mended back to her suit and wrapped it tightly around his arm.

She opened Shepard's medi-gel containers and scraped the remaining gel onto the outside of the bandage that was already blood soaked. She pulled more fabric from one of her suit pockets and continued wrapping the area. She turned Shepard over and rested his head in her lap as she sat their cradling his head.

"Keelah… I never thought that I would be doing this for you, Shepard…" She said to herself.

She dozed off with Shepard still in her arms. Shepard's eyes opened slowly and he moved out of Tali's arms and looked around. He looked down at his arm where a large bloodied bandage with the same designs of Tali's hood were. He looked down at Tali, who was so exhausted that she didn't even wake from Shepard stirring. He saw the tear in her hood which caused him to look back at his makeshift bandage. He untied the outer layer of the bandages and fashioned an arm sling for himself.

He rose slowly gaining his bearings and memories. He limped his way over to a large leafed fern, and he tore two large leaves from it and limped back to Tali. He covered her with one leaf as he returned to her side and covered himself up with his leaf. He felt the exhaustion catch up with him. It grabbed at his eyelids and tore them down quickly. Shepard's mind shut down immediately too, causing him to fall into the deepest sleep he had ever fallen into.

Tali awoke hours later. She was surprised to have a warm leaf laying over top of her. She wondered if anyone was out there, but instantly she looked down at the leafed Shepard and smiled. She returned to Shepard's side and wrapped a tired and sore arm around him as she too felt the sleep attack her, a battle she was happy to lose.

* * *

Life on the Normandy was not so pleasant. The electronics were still on the fritz, but many of the ship's systems had been restored, one being EDI. Joker and EDI worked through the night rerouting power to the sectors of the ship to boost the repairs. Much of the crew also worked to repair the ship, except Miranda and Garrus who had taken refuge in the main-forward battery room.

They were in the heat of the moment and they knew that no one was going to bug them this time. Miranda never imagined she would find herself so madly in love with someone that was a different species, but the way Garrus acted just made her smile all the time. As much as she wished that a human had those characteristics, she knew that no human could exist with such qualities.

Garrus, too, could not believe that he had fallen so madly in love with a Cerberus officer, well, ex-Cerberus officer. Though his first impression of Miranda was that of a total bosh'tet, as Tali told him constantly, he had grown quite attracted to her leader-like manner and strictness of her protocols on the battlefield. Now here he was, in the main-forward battery room with the woman of his dreams, though sadly she wasn't turian, in his arms.

They both jumped when a hard knocking came from the door behind them. Garrus decided he would do all the talking.

"Yes what is it?" Garrus asked loudly, hiding the truth quite well.

"Garrus? What are you doing in there?" asked Jacob.

"I'm just finishing some work," Garrus said as Miranda rubbed her face along his cheek making him breath out shakily.

"Well, I need some work done down in engineering, and I was wondering if you could give me a hand?" Jacob asked through the door.

"Can it wait! I'm in the middle of some calibrations!" Garrus yelled becoming ever angrier at the Jacob's voice.

"Very well… When your done, you know where to find me…" Jacob stated.

Garrus listened to the footsteps slowly fade on the catwalk to his door. He turned his attention back to Miranda.

"Now… Where were we?" Garrus asked making the best impression that he was smiling.

"Garrus!" came Jacob's voice from behind the door again. "Have you seen Miranda? I've been looking all over for her."

"N-No I haven't," Garrus said struggling to maintain a calm composure about himself.

"Thanks for the help Garrus," Jacob said his voice trailing off as he complained about the lack of help.

Garrus turned to Miranda again, but she had already slid off of the panel and was putting her clothes back on.

"But we weren't finished…" Garrus said with disappointment in his voice.

"They're getting to nosy. I have to blow off some of the suspicion before it gets too bad and we are discovered." Miranda explained.

Garrus agreed as he slipped his armor back on. He watched Miranda slide the suit up her legs and over her most appealing curves. He sighed a happy relief causing Miranda to look back at him and smile. They finished suiting back up again. Miranda walked over to Garrus and gave him a long kiss before she scampered quickly out of the door.

Garrus felt his face burn and was glad that he couldn't blush. He was quite amazed at the physiology of humans; it was becoming quite attractive to him. He leaned against the panel and thought about how far their relationship had blossomed in such a short time. He breathed out happily as he turned back to the panel to do some much needed calibrations.

* * *

Jack stayed in her room. She didn't want to think about what happened on that planet. She began to talk to herself out of guilt and anger. She even attempted to soothe herself.

"It wasn't your fault Jack… It was the ship's. It was just an accident. What am I saying to myself! Of course it's my fault! I'm here and they're not. Who am I kidding?" She said to herself.

"And here I thought that my life was finally becoming normal, and what do you do Jack? You kill the two people who ever cared about you! Was I jealous of him loving Tali? …No! Shepard's not my type! He's too… nice! Why! Why do I feel so horrible?" Jack screamed at herself as she threw herself onto her cot.

She tossed and turned as she tried to find her comfort zone, but the deep rooted guilt egged her on and burned a hole through her conscious. She stared grumpily at the ceiling and tried to figure out some way that she could amend her friendship with Shepard.

"He must hate me…" Jack told herself over and over again as she slowly drifted into a much needed sleep.


	20. Chapter 20: Camping Essentials

Tali wouldn't allow Shepard to do anything while she pieced together a makeshift lean-to to provide them some shelter if another storm passed. Shepard continual tried to stand and help her, but each time he was greeted with her narrow gaze and her hands slowly pushing him back onto the soft grass.

"You need to rest Shepard…" Tali repeated on every occurrence.

"I'm fine Tali… Let me help you." Shepard asked like he was a school child.

She stared at Shepard with narrow eyes. She turned back to the half standing lean-to and ties more grass and sticks to the top. Shepard fell backwards into the grass and gave a loud over-exaggerated sigh. This caused Tali to turn back to Shepard. She smiled under her helmet at the childish way he was acting, but she easily hid that under her ever narrower eyes. Shepard gave her a disarming smile and stretched out on the grass.

"I should a tan…" Shepard said as he stretched his legs out.

"I think we both need one," Tali said struggling to hold all of her emotions back.

Shepard smiled at her, and even though she had her back to him she knew he was smiling at her. She cocked her head and looked over her shoulder at him. She attempted to look angry, but her eyes must have failed her because Shepard sat back and laughed. Tali turned back to the lean-to and tried to focus on finishing it, but Shepard seemed to sap all of her motivation from her body like a sponge.

She lost herself staring at two different thickness of grasses. She lost all interest in the lean-to and began to wonder why this grass was thicker than the other grass. She became so enthralled in this trivial matter that she didn't even hear Shepard stand up. This caused her to jump when she felt a hand slowly wrap around her narrow waist. She wanted the other hand to finish off the embrace, but she knew that she wouldn't have that pleasure.

"You are working too hard Tali…" Shepard said reassuringly to her. "We'll be fine."

"I just want to make sure," Tali added.

"Be prepared?" Shepard asked.

"Yes…" Tali stated.

"Well, I'm glad you are stuck here with me…" Shepard said releasing his grasp and returning to the comfy grass.

Tali was about to say something when Shepard's armor echoed to life with Joker's voice broadcasting with worry.

"Shepard! Tali! Do you read?" asked Joker loudly.

"Shepard here!" Shepard said into the microphone on his suit.

"Thank you miracle space hamster!" Joker yelled through the microphone.

"Joker? What's taking so long?" Shepard asked still smiling from Joker's comment.

"We came under attack Commander, and we were hit with an EMP. The circuits on the shuttles are fried. We need to go to a depot to get them fixed." Joker explained.

"And how long will that take?" Shepard asked skeptically.

"Well… I would say almost two weeks, week and a half," Joker told him kind of quietly.

Shepard's arm fell as he looked over to Tali who had completely froze beside the lean-to. He managed to lift his arm again and speak into the radio once more.

"I hope I heard you wrong, but did you say almost two weeks!?" Shepard asked angrily.

"Yes… You heard correctly… We will be dropping some supplies since the Normandy's planetary navigation systems were fried. We will be back for you, promise," Joker said.

"Very well Joker. Get it done!" Shepard said.

Shepard immediately stood and walked over to the tree line and scratched his head. Tali stood and looked at him, hoping to find some answer from him, some course of action, but she found nothing. Shepard scratched his chin as he turned back around and rejoined with Tali. She held out her hands to receive his hands and they stood there, both in deep thought. Time would tell how they would manage to survive the fourteen days that lay before them.

"We better finish this lean-to," Shepard said as he walked to a broken branch and lifted it to the lean-to.

The atmosphere changed almost instantly. There was no more babying and no more jokes. They had a lot of work to do, and half the day had already passed. The shelter was the first completed. It wasn't the best, but it still provided an area where, if they snuggled into each other's arms, they would fit. A few moments later a pod touched down in the field next to them. It was filled with vacuum sealed nutrient supply containers, a few medi-gel packs, air filters and diagnostic suit repairs for Tali, a thermo-lighter, a pack of cards, and a small armored case with Tali's name on it.

Tali instantly grabbed the small briefcase-like object out of Shepard's view. She closed her arms around it and almost laughed at what it was. She tore the name off and unfolded the paper to find a note in Mordin's handwriting.

_Tali'Zorah. Thought you might want this. Stressful situation. May need to relax. Two week supply. Hope you like it._

_Mordin_

Tali's face became ablaze as she finished the note. She breathed a bit to try to calm herself down. Shepard walked over, and this time she had enough of her senses to keep the note and object hidden.

"What's that?" Shepard asked motioning towards the box.

"Antibiotics! In case I get sick!" Tali said nervously.

"Well those could come in handy…" Shepard said oblivious to what actually was in the case.

Tali stood quite surprised that he just missed everything and passed her nervousness off as nothing. She hooked the box onto her belt and slid the note into her pocket as she made her way back to pod. There was more in the pod then Tali had first imagined. Shepard proceeded to pull a box of thermal clips and two assault rifles out, two blankets and an expandable floor mat. There was also a pack of plastic coverings and strong palladium poles.

Shepard used his available hand to drive the stronger stakes around the simple lean-to providing extra support. Tali carried over a collection of metal sheeting that she tied to the posts and draped over the lean-to to provide extra cover. They stood back and looked at the homely looking lean-to. Shepard stretched the expandable pad out under it and laid down sighing out as he slowly cracked his back. Tali wearily looked down at him and she too joined him laying on the pad. She felt the vertebrae in her back slide back into place, and she too sighed out in relief.

It was only day one of their two week escapade in the hostile environment of a planet-wide jungle. The good times always seemed to be lost with Shepard, but Tali never gave it much thought; she enjoyed the constant change that Shepard's actions provided for her. She closed her eyes and felt the soft pad slowly massage her beaten back and soar muscles. She didn't even feel the case that she had slipped on her belt slowly get pulled off. She turned to Shepard to say something and found him holding the box up the light. Her heart missed a few beats as she reached quickly for the box. She pulled his arms away so she couldn't reach.

"Shepard! Give it back!" She demanded as her face began to burn with embarrassment.

Then she saw what she wished he didn't see. The small on his face grew instantly as he slowly turned to her. The smile alone halted her from trying to get the box though her hands were still outstretched. He rested the box onto her chest and folded his arms behind his head; the smile remained plastered on his face.

"Shepard… I-I can explain…" Tali stammered.

Shepard turned to her again and looked into her face mask. She could feel him looking through her mask. She knew that he could see the shock on her face.

"I don't know why… It's just-Mordin-and-well-he… You know… Two weeks is a long time and I… I mean you… I mean we might… you know… cards get boring." Tali said quickly.

Shepard's only response was him lifting his hand and presenting the brilliant stone on his hand. Tali stared at it for quite some time. She reached to one of her side pockets and procured an identical gemmed ring. She slipped it onto her middle finger and laced her hands with Shepard. She felt her eyes droop as the pressure of Shepard's hand squeezing her own melted all of her worries away.

"I still don't understand why you get so nervous about such things anymore…" Shepard said softly to her.

"I don't know either," Tali remarked in a similar tone.

"I think it's so adorable…" Shepard said bringing a hand up and softly rubbing it across the edge of her helmet.

Her cheeks burned and she closed her eyes as her mind raced with the flood of emotions. She giggled and broke her hand off of Shepard's hand to touch the hand that was on her helmet. She could feel his hand on her face and the soft warmth that they carried. The helmet burned away in her mind as she fell into a dream world where they were laying together floating in space. She didn't have a helmet on. She didn't have a suit on. She found herself wearing the old quarian dress robes. Her mind was free from disease and sickness. She felt Shepard's hand slowly caress the side of her cheek down to where it hooked around her chin pulling her gaze back up to him. Her eyes sparkled with the glow of a distant binary star that joined them in this fantasy.

She could feel Shepard's arms wrap around her body and pull her tightly to his body. Her body fell into his and absorbed the soft warmth and safety that emanated from it. She slid her hand along the curves of his strong chest up to his face where she met his gaze again. Her hand made it to his cheek; their gaze never breaking. Shepard's hands began to pull her head forwards closer to his own. She made no resistance as their faces neared. She closed her eyes and turned her head ready to feel his lips caress over her own. The hand on her back rose to her head allowing her head to more comfortably make contact. The tingle of the proximity of the lips made Tali's heart leap. She heard a loud bang and opened her eyes.

She found herself laying back under the lean-to. The rain outside was falling hard, but gladly not as hard as the previous night. She lifted her hands up to her head and rubbed the sleep slowly out of her eyes. She couldn't even remember when she fell asleep. When she looked over and saw Shepard sleeping heavily beside her, the burn in her cheeks returned. Happily she felt the breeze of the storm cool her cheeks down.

She immediately reached back up to her face and felt her unmasked face. She began breathing in deeply as she began to panic. She looked all around her for her visor. She found it laying right where her head was when she was sleeping. She picked it up and fumbled it in her hands. She tried to snap it back into place, but to her dismay she found that the seals were broken. Her look instantly flipped to her cybernetic hand that was still reading full, implying that she had no antibiotics flowing in her system. Her breathing became deeper and more staggered as the panic began to overwhelm her.

The case she had received from Mordin was instantly open in front of her. None of the vials had been removed. She turned to Shepard who managed to sleep through all of her rustling around and shake him.

"Shepard. Shepard! Wake up!" She yelled at him.

Shepard sat up immediately and in a daze. He looked around sleepily as he propped himself up with his pistol. Tali grabbed a hold of his head and turned him to her face. He looked at her with a look of confusion.

"Now?" Shepard asked, still oblivious to the source of Tali's worry.

"No!" Tali screamed as she lifted her hand up to show him the full antibiotic tanks.

His eyes instantly opened completely as the confusion still seared through his eyes.

"Then… how are you sitting in front of me without your mask on…" Shepard asked slowly.

"I don't know…" Tali said, staring hard at the readouts on the antibiotic reserves, "And my visor's seals are broken…"

"Can you fix it?" Shepard asked as the rain outside began to whip causing Shepard to notice that it was actually raining.

"With what I have with me? No. I need more supplies to make a guaranteed seal." Tali explained still a little flustered.

After scanning the visor more thoroughly, Tali found that it was cracked and had a chip in its edge, severing the seal of her suit. She had to trace to the night before to remember when her visor had broken. The force of the tree hitting her in the back of the head, and her collapse against the ground must have broken it, but that just created more questions. How was she still alive if she had actually been walking around for a whole day with an unsealed, contaminated suit? She didn't feel the least bit ill though she did feel uneasy about her health. She stared at the broken visor and stared at her own hands and began to wonder why this was happening.

She grabbed the strap that held her entire suit together and slowly began to loosen it, causing the seals around her neck region to hiss as they opened. She questioned if that was the best thing to do… She questioned if she had just committed suicide…


	21. Chapter 21: Relaxation

Tali sat staring out of the opening of the shelter, her mask still cradled in her hands. She thought long and hard about the impossibility of her being out of her mask. She was even surprised when she unsealed her suit that no ill effects took place. The cool damp air of the jungle tingled softly on her skin, something that should never happen, ever. The rain slowly fell with small guts of cool wind bringing in a soothing mist into the shelter and onto Tali's face. She breathed out as though every one would be her last.

She quickly opened her eyes from the deep thought and looked at a cold raindrop that had landed on her arm. She began to feel it all over. She still had the damp rain covering her body. The Omni-tool was out and scanning the contents of the water almost instantly. Tali quickly processed through all the information with her eyes getting ever wider at the growing data stream.

"This isn't just water…" Tali whispered to herself.

Shepard leaned over from the side with a confuse look on his face.

"What?" Shepard asked.

She turned to his voice like she was unaware of his presence right beside her. Shepard saw a very rare twinkle in her eye as the smile grew quickly across her face. He watched as pure excitement began to cause her to begin to grab his hands and shake them.

"It's the water Shepard! It's not water!" She practically yelled throwing her hand out into the water making her hand drip with the water.

Shepard still had a confused look on his face.

"Then what is it?" Shepard asked.

"I don't know, but it appears to be shielding my body from the harms of exposure!" She said excitedly.

"We need to get as much of this as we can then!" Shepard said motioning towards the stream of water still coming down outside.

They both quickly grabbed any and all containers around the small camp. They turned them over to gather as much water as the buckets could hold. Tali ran into the woods to find anything that she could use to hold more water, but stopped abruptly. She stood in a total awe at what lay before her. Down a small rock face into a small jungle depression was the most beautiful and most spectacular thing that Tali had ever seen.

"Shepard!" She yelled excitedly as she bent over to scan the area in front of her.

Shepard rounded the corner of the tree, steadying himself on the side of the tree. His mouth, too, dropped at the scene in front of him.

"All of that can't be…" Shepard trailed off.

"It is!" Tali said excitedly, standing quickly and wrapping her arms around Shepard's neck giving him a long a passionate kiss.

The small depression contained a low spring with a sloping waterfall. The large rocks and shear drops prevented the trees from growing in the depression, but the roots from the larger trees hang loosely down reaching for the steaming spring that lay at the bottom of the rocks. The water was fed directly from a waterfall that stretched out into the jungle in unknown places.

Tali's scans showed them that the spring was filled with the same 'miracle' water as the rain that was falling on their heads. Tali began climbing down the rocks using the many roots and vines that were draped over the rocks as handholds. Shepard watched her decent with some concern. He pulled his pistol out and kept his eyes around the edges of the calming pool. He inched his way over to the spot that Tali had taken, and after a quick inspection climbed down to the next ledge. Tali stood right at the gently sloping stone basin that held the water. Shepard looked just in time to see Tali drop her suit and slowly walk into the water. She laughed as she slowly swam to turn Shepard.

"Is everything safe?" Shepard asked cautiously inching his way further along with his arm still in a sling.

"Shepard! This is amazing!" Tali yelled to him as she dunked under the water.

Shepard quickened his pace to get over to the side of the water. He glanced around the pool to see the dark outlines of water serpents or some kind of snake creature that lived in the adjacent rocks or alcoves. Tali's head emerged in the middle of the spring. The look in her eyes began to melt all of his caution.

"Come on Shepard! Get in here!" Tali teased slapping the water with her hand.

Shepard gave one last cautionary look around. He slid his clothes off and placed the pistol under his shirt right at the water's edge. He dipped his toe in and was quite surprised to find how soothing the water felt. He eased himself into the water, and by the time he had completely entered the water, Tali had already swam next to him. He had to admit the water was incredibly pleasant. He felt most of the aches and pulled muscles begin the relax. Many of the cuts and bruises including the large gash in his arm began to tingle in the water.

He felt Tali slide around him. She was still laughing about the shear insanity of their luck. Shepard could tell that Tali was almost as happy as she was the first night that she showed him her face. Tali's hands wrapped around his sore shoulders. The uniqueness of her hand orientation proved to be the clincher in Shepard's relaxation as she squeezed each pressure point in his back. He felt himself slide deeper into the warm water.

He felt her hands slide off of his back and drips of water splash behind him. He turned to see Tali standing out of the water completely naked. She smiled at him and walked the edges of the pool. He watcher her, completely mystified at the unique beauty of Tali's naked body contrasted to the rock face covered in leaves and vines. He followed up his future wife's body. The strange curve of her shins always made Shepard wonder along with the long slender arms that hung from her shoulders.

Her body was that of perfection as she made her way farther down the edge of the pool. The way her hips curved and the way she walked made Shepard all that more attracted to the fine woman that walked before him. The glistening of the water on her skin only extenuated her beauty in the soft sunlight. Her giggles easily blended in with the surrounding ambient noises. He wanted to swim to her quickly, but upon lifting his damaged right arm, decided that would be impossible. Instead he reclined back to enjoy her little show.

She turned once she got to the other end of the pool. She sat down and put her feet in the water. Shepard felt the radiance of her happiness radiate brilliantly on him. She smiled once more and waved him over. Shepard pointed at his arm and shrugged. She acted like she was angry and pointed to the area beside her. He smiled and pushed off from the shore. He swam with only his left arm and his legs which were enough to get him there. He swam brining his head directly in between her legs. She smiled at him.

"This is absolutely amazing Shepard!" She said to him.

He turned around to regard the spring again. It was quite sight indeed. The sun rays shot through the trees as the rain slowed to almost a standstill. Everything glimmered brilliantly through the trees and off the surface of the steaming spring. He heard Tali sigh behind them. It sounded over-exaggerated to get his attention more than it actually served to show her appreciation for the scenery. He turned and found himself face to face with Tali who had quickly switched positions.

"Yes?" Shepard asked getting lovingly close to her face.

"I have a feeling you think this spring is more beautiful than me," Tali said squinting her eyes like she was angry.

"It is quite beautiful… but nothing compares to you," he said as he softly kissed her.

"Glad to hear that, but…" she started to say, but another kissed stopped the words.

"I want to tell you something."

"Yes?" Shepard said pulling a little closer away from her so she could speak.

"Technically we aren't married yet…" Tali started.

"We will be…" Shepard said taken aback from the conversation.

"In your form of marriage, but I haven't told you about the quarian bonding ritual…" She said softly diverting her eyes at the mention of her traditions.

"You want to get married twice?" Shepard asked her.

"Yes, well no, technically it would be a different ceremony so we would be married in both races books." She said bringing her eyes back to Shepard's.

"Marrying the most amazing, most adorable quarian mechanic in the universe… Twice… Is that even a decision?" Shepard said smiling.

"So you will do it?" Tali asked excitedly.

"For you, I would do anything…" Shepard said.

Tali squealed with joy as she pulled herself to him hugging him harder than she had ever hugged him.

"There may be a problem…" Tali said, her face beginning to burn as the thought of the thing she had to mention came even closer.

"Problem?" Shepard questioned.

"Well… before the couple can go through with the suit bonding, or in our case a great night, they need to do the ritual…" she said pausing at the end to see if Shepard understood.

Shepard's eyes widened a bit when he pieced together her sentence. "So that means you would have to be…" Shepard started.

"Yes, Shepard… You shouldn't have touched me before we have even tried to perform the ceremony. I need to be clean… untouched…" She sighed out as she managed to squeeze the more uncomfortable words out of her mouth, "a virgin…" She said slowly, wading through all of the syllables.

Shepard stared at her for some time. He too felt embarrassment as he visualized himself at the quarian meeting ship and the quarian bonder or whatever they were called proclaiming that the bond could not be made because of premarital sex. The looks given to him would be quite drilling and that added to the look of Tali's embarrassment would only make it worse.

"What if we don't tell them…" Shepard suggested.

"You'll have to do the talking…" Tali said with a smile.

"Talking is easy. Playing innocent will be much harder…" Shepard said.

"You can't be looking at my butt during the ceremony then." Tali said with a large disarming smile.

"That would be harder then fighting Saren!" Shepard yelled jokingly.

"But our lives depend on it!" Tali teased.

"Then I must!" Shepard proclaimed.

Tali rolled over laughing. She rolled so she faced straight up at the looming canopy. Grasses and small mosses were still stuck to her body where she was laying, but she seemed oblivious to them. Shepard looked at the dirt covering her body and smiled as the joke flared in his mind.

"It appears that I have the dirtiest quarian laying in front of me!" Shepard yelled.

Tali rolled over and looked at Shepard with shock. She missed the joke, but upon seeing the small cakes of dirt coating her hands, she started laughing too.

"Well I guess I'm going to need someone to clean me off…" She said trilling her voice a bit more than usual as she slipped back into the water into Shepard's arm.

* * *

The electrical repairs on the Normandy had been completed by this time. Joker had already laid in the course for the nearest fuel depot so they could get the correct materials to completely repair the fried shuttles. He didn't quite like the idea of leaving Shepard and Tali behind on Pragia, but he knew that it would be the only way for all of them to survive. EDI's image popped up next to him after the engines blasted into life.

"We need to talk Jeff…" EDI said.

"About what EDI?" Joker asked still flipping through the ship's engineering diagnostics that normally Tali would go through.

"The way you talked to Jack. Do you think she deserved that?" EDI questioned.

"She messed up and lost the Commander… How could I have responded?" Joker said angrily.

"She didn't mean to, Jeff." EDI explained.

Joker slumped his head in guilt.

"I was a little rough on her wasn't I?" Joker asked quietly.

"Yes…" EDI answered.

"How will I even make it down to engineering, and on top of that, what if she doesn't forgive me and smashes me to a fine pulp against the bulkhead. I have fragile bones you know?" Joker explained.

"I am just a machine, Jeff. I don't know how to approach this matter." EDI explained.

"Great… Your quite helpful you know that?" Joker said.

"Don't worry. I'll drive the ship while your gone." EDI responded.

"An what if she kills me?" Joker asked.

"Then the ship will be that much closer to being mine…" EDI answered. Joker stared at the holographic projection for some time. "That was a joke."

"Fine… Fine, Fine, Fine. Wish me luck EDI." Joker said standing softly up from his chair.

* * *

Garrus and Miranda had met back up in her quarters after they had made their appearences on the ship. The more Miranda looked into those turian eyes the more her heart melted to him. She loved the rough patches on his skin, the bony mandibles on his face, the way they twitched when she undressed. All of them made him look cuter and that much more adorable. The memory of Shepard had all, but left her mind after her talk with Garrus two days ago.

Garrus was quite surprised to find how quickly she started having sex with him. After just a single talk and a secret dinner in one night, she was all over him. The way she flung her hair over her shoulder and the way she used her biotics were even more amazing. He felt relaxed and calm when he was with her. _That must be how Shepard feels when he's with Tali_. Garrus thought to himself. He also liked how she saw past his large scar across the side of his face. He thought for sure that would be the ultimate put off, but happily it seemed only to make her more attracted to him.

They were quite a match for each other as much as Miranda wouldn't make it known to anyone else though Garrus was quite sure everyone knew. Shepard wasn't known to keep relationships a secret. He basically told everyone about him and Tali. He didn't tell Wrex, Liara, or Ashley who Garrus suspected might not take it so well. Garrus left the room with Miranda still laying in the bed. He waved goodbye to her as he slipped through the door. From what Joker told him, he was the new acting commander until Shepard was retrieved so he decided to check the messages on the computer.

Miranda watched from the bed as Garrus slipped through the door. She giggled when he waved goodbye to her. He was just way too cute and nice to be a turian. Miranda thought to herself. She reclined a few more minutes in her bed before she decided to get dressed and get moving. She didn't want any more suspicion than she already had at her hands. The whole relationship seemed so foreign to her, and after a awhile, she laughed to herself. Garrus's scar just made him that much more fierce looking. It reminded her of Shepard, and in a way, she found Shepard inside of Garrus with far more. She decided that she was going to encrypt and scramble a message to her dad telling him about her "new boyfriend". She wanted to see him squirm at the mention that he happened to be a turian.

Garrus flipped through the messages in the captain's quarters. Most were only congratulatory messages. Some were spam. Right before Garrus decided to call it quits he caught a message hidden between two life insurance advertisements. It was from Ash W.. Garrus couldn't resist to have peek at the message. He read guiltily for quite some time.

Dear Shepard,

I want to get back together with you again since I see that you have stopped following Cerberus. I still love you with all the blood in my body. You were the only one that care for me and showed me respect. I will never forget that. I hope that you read my other message to you. I can't tell you how much I was upset that you were working for Cerberus. I guess I just over-reacted. So what do you say Skipper? Want to go hang out sometime?

Love,

Ash

P.S. I'm tracking this message so I know if you've read it or not. : )

Garrus's mandibles moved slightly as he finished the last sentence.

"Shepard's in for a surprise when he gets back aboard…" Garrus said to himself as he wrote back to Ashley.


	22. Chapter 22: A New Darkness Emerges

Krog sat staring at the dim light of his cockpit. The readouts on the ship flickered with the destination of his small ship. Krog smiled every time he looked at the picture of that planet, but a small subtle nagging prevented him from truly laughing to himself. He knew the challenge that he was going to face; a problem that only excited his Krogan sense of battle. The Blood Pack had offered him his share of battles, but the confines of the hierarchy of power among the Blood Pack ranks limited his actions. He despised the 'pointing finger' and the 'do-that-voice'. He severed all ties with the Blood Pack though he did 'borrow' a ship before he left.

The magnificent planet came into view through the small cockpit viewport. The actual site of the planet over the hologram display excited Krog all over again. He enjoyed the hunt and challenge and he knew this would be the ultimate prey. He lifted his modified shotgun to his eye. He aimed it at the Pragia and pretended to fire it.

"Here I come, Shepard…" he whispered to himself as he lowered the shotgun back down to the holster on the side of the seat.

* * *

Joker walked gingerly down the last flight of steps down to Jack's 'quarters'. He poked his head around the corner before he made any move to round the corner. Jack was laying on her cot looking straight up into the ceiling. Joker took a few more steps around the corner and opened his mouth to show he was there.

"What do you want?" Jack demanded bitterly.

Joker fumbled around a bit, caught off-guard by Jack's sixth sense ability to detect anyone who entered her room.

"I just wanted to say… uhm…" He scratched the back of his head. "I'm sorry for yelling at you." Joker said.

"You're not sorry… No one is…" She rolled over to face Joker. Her eyes were burning with hate. "What are you trying to do? Mend our relationship? What relationship!? You come down here like your sorry when really your just down here to act like nothing is wrong! I don't forgive you! Hell! I don't even forgive myself! Leave me alone!" Jack yelled as she turned away from Joker.

Joker turned around and began to leave, but he stopped right on the edge of the corner. He turned angrily back to Jack and walked all the way up to her bed.

"You think you are such a badass! I came down here to offer you forgiveness and all I get is, 'My name is Jack and I don't forgive myself for what I did to Shepard blahblahblah'," Joker said mockingly.

Jack turned angrily around and rose. Surprisingly, Joker didn't budge from his spot. He stared angrily into her eyes and didn't even flinch when the blue energy started glowing on her skin.

"Are you mocking me?" Jack asked through her teeth.

"And what if I am?" Joker asked taking another step towards her.

Joker lifted her hand and sent a large pulse of biotic energy into the bulkhead. It bent accordingly though the look on Joker's face still did not change.

"I will break every bone your 'funny' body!" Jack yelled.

Joker laughed. "I'm sorry Jack, but I've already done that before.

Jack's face turned sour. She clenched her fists and stared angrily at Joker. The biotic energy subsided as she sighed out and sat back down onto the bed. Though she looked like she had finally calmed down, her eyes still burned with a deep hate. Joker decided pressing this any further, and he walked back towards the stairs.

"Thank you…" He heard Jack say as he rounded the corner.

Joker sat back down in his nice leather chair. EDI's image expanded from its port.

"How was it Jeff?" EDI asked.

"You should know… You have sensors everywhere…" Joker said as he started punching in calibrations to the docking routine though EDI was controlling it fine.

"I want to hear how you took it," EDI said.

"Maybe later… We have a shuttle to fix." Joker said as the ship shifted as the docking vacuum sealed the ship into place.

* * *

Garrus and Miranda decided to have a small dinner while the ship stood in stand-by. Garrus had brought a specialized dinner with him while Miranda had her own. The first couple of minutes were awkwardly silent, but after they took a couple of bites of their foods, Miranda started to talk.

"So how is your… eel-tentacle… thing?" Miranda asked looking at the Calamari-like dish sitting in front of Garrus.

"It's amazing," Garrus said as he slurped up a tentacle. Miranda cringed slightly at the sound. "How's your… bird?" He asked later.

"Tastes like chicken," Miranda joked.

"What's a chicken?" Garrus asked.

Miranda sighed and looked down at her strips of chicken on her plate. "It's what I'm eating right now."

"When doesn't chicken taste like chicken?" Garrus asked looking down at her food.

"It was a joke, Garrus." Miranda said with a smile.

Garrus gave a small laugh, but he felt oblivious to the joke. "What's so funny about saying that your chicken tastes like chicken?" Garrus asked.

"There is a saying on Earth that if something tastes good and someone asks how it tastes, you say it tastes like chicken." Miranda explained.

"Is chicken really that good tasting?" Garrus asked motioning to the strips still laying in front of her.

"It is amazingly good!" Miranda said as she brought a fork full into her mouth.

Garrus nodded and took another bite of his food. Miranda finished her chicken strip and looked back at the strange colored dish in front of Garrus again.

"So… How does your food taste?" Miranda asked.

Garrus looked up at her and finished swallowing his food. He gave his best turian smile. "Tastes like chicken."

"That's not what I meant!" Miranda yelled at Garrus laughing as she went.

Garrus started laughing too.

"I don't know how to tell you how it tastes, since I've never eaten anything that you eat." Garrus explained.

Miranda knew of the intolerance that their individual dishes could place on each other's systems, but the more she looked at the strange tentacles on Garrus's plate the more she wanted to try it. The curiosity became too much.

"Garrus? Do you know what all would happen if we tried to eat the other's food?" Miranda asked.

Garrus looked down at his dish and over to Miranda's dish which he had been eyeing for sometime now. "I think that we would go into anaphylactic shock and possibly die, but I'm not quite sure." Garrus explained.

Miranda stood up and walked over to the small medicine bay that she had set up into her room. She pulled out two hypodermic needles filled with specific medicine for just such an occasion. She placed them on the table and smiled at Garrus.

"I don't think we should do this…" Garrus said as he lifted one of the needles off of the table.

Miranda walked over to Garrus and injected herself. She lifted the fork that still had a tentacle stabbed into it and took a huge bite off of it. Some of the slime dripped off and fell onto her chin which she wiped off with her finger.

"This tastes amazing!" Miranda exclaimed.

Garrus looked over at the chicken and at the needle that was still in his hands.

"To hell with it!" Garrus said as he injected himself.

He walked over to the chicken and took up a strip and ate it.

"Chicken is… wow!" Garrus said as he chewed on the piece of cooked, dead bird.

"What do I call your dish?" Miranda asked pointing the fork down at the plate full of slimy tentacles.

"Turian Surprise," Garrus explained.

"What's the surprise?" Miranda asked, and like it answered her the piece of tentacle in her stomach moved. "Holy crap Garrus! That felt amazing!"

Garrus and Miranda laughed heartily as the candles slowly burned at the table. Miranda forgot that she was sitting on Garrus's side of the table and took a large mouthful of Turian wine. She instantly blew the strong tasting wine onto the table. She looked over at the cup. Garrus and Miranda laughed again.

"Did you ever think that this would ever happen?" Garrus asked as he wiped up the mess Miranda had made.

"What?" Miranda asked.

"A turian and a Cerberus officer falling in love?" Garrus asked staring directly into Miranda's eyes.

"Technically I'm an ex-Cerberus officer," Miranda said with a smile.

"Still…" Garrus said reaching across the table to grab her hand.

Miranda blushed as she felt his long three fingered hand wrap around her hand. _Why do you love him Miranda?_ She thought to herself as Garrus walked to the other side of the table so he was standing right next to her. She answered her own question aloud.

"Because you are simply amazing…" She said softly as she kissed the front of Garrus's mandibles.

* * *

Shepard and Tali had built a strong wall around their small camp. It wasn't pretty, but it held back a lot of the animals that walked through their campsite during the night. Tali was caught in an eternal smiling vortex as she walked around with only the robes from her suit on. She always wondered how the ancient quarians felt walking without masks, and now here she was, of all places. Most of the card and chess games were getting old, but happily one thing occupied their time during the night. An activity that Tali had fallen quite in love with.

She nearly forgot how wearing a suit felt in those seven days that they had already stayed on that planet. Every night she started having the same dream. She floated in space wearing only the robes. Shepard held her close as they slowly floated around a binary star system. She felt her eyes mist up as she stared deeply into those amazing brown eyes. She felt him pull her closer to him. Their bodies pressed against each other and grew in pressure. The closer his head inched closer to hers the more she felt her eyes close and her lips reach out to him.

The moment their lips touched together, the binary star system melted into a supernova. Both of the stars shrank and dimmed causing a dim orange light to glow off of their faces. The stars exploded with power sending a shockwave of gamma radiation heading towards them. The brilliance of the light from the blast heated their bodies and their minds. Instead of feeling pain at the moment of impact, it was replaced by this overwhelming sense of joy. This made her twist her head as she tried to bury her lips deeper into his. The arms still around her continued to pull her into his chest as they rubbed her back.

They only stopped kissing to take s small breath. She began to softly nibble on his lower lip as he ran his hand through the short hair that had slowly re-grown over her prolonged suit exodus. She never knew that quarians had hair until her visit to this magnificent planet. The growing shockwave of brilliant white energy was next to approach their forms. The white light didn't merely seem white, but seemed to shimmer with a galactic pureness that was unknown to the galaxy. The tears of happiness ran down her face as the kissing became more heated and passionate.

She was aware that this was merely a dream, but she was able to convince herself each night that it was real. The black hole that formed in the wake of the brilliant destruction whipped the glowing dust of the star into brilliant sweeping arches that stretched for miles. The arches spun around the black hole causing an artistic blast of colors of the entire rainbow. Gases and dust continued to whip around them. Tali pulled away from Shepard. Both of their eyes opened as they became aware of the brilliance that had been experienced during those few minutes though it felt like hours.

Tali awoke to a large screeching noise, the noise of a ship entering the atmosphere of the planet. She slid out of the hut to find Shepard staring up at a large flaming trail flying about three miles away from their position. She looked over to Shepard for answers when she caught sight of the data pad in his hands.

"What is it Shepard?" Tali asked.

"Trouble…" Shepard responded dropping the data pad to his side. An angry looking picture of a highly scarred Krogan was pictured across the pad. The name Krog scrolled below the picture along with what Tali could see as the longest list of murder offences.

Tali looked off of the data pad and back to the fading trail of fire.

"He's here isn't he?" She asked.

"Yes…" Shepard said quietly.


	23. Chapter 23: Krog's Prize

Shepard and Tali slept lightly that night. They knew it was going to be a long day tomorrow, but they kept themselves aware if this Krogan, Krog, decided to attack that night. Tali noticed the change in Shepard's attitude the following day. He smiled and talked like he normally did, but the look in his eyes reminded Tali when he was Virmire. The thought sent a shiver down her spine. All of the guns were cleaned and loaded every two hours. Shepard refused to let her see the details of Krog, but she managed to hack into his data pad, something she wasn't overly fond of doing.

From what she picked out from the long list of murder and assault cases against the old Krogan, he was smarter and less straight forward than other Krogans. It appeared that before he joined the Blood Pack, he had taken a job as a big game hunter specializing in killing thresher maws. She also found the disturbing information that he had killed at least fifteen of them, nine of which he had killed without any help.

The information took a few breaths out of Tali, but she felt more at ease that she knew the challenge that was waiting in the jungle. Shepard opened the side flap for their hut which caused Tali to jump slightly as she quickly closed her Omni-tool.

"Tali? We need to talk…" Shepard said.

"Yes… of course, Shepard," Tali said looking back at the dark tent.

Tali slid herself from the hut and stood up to catch hold of Shepard's hands. He cradled them for sometime before he decided to speak.

"I know you've already looked at the bio for Krog…" Tali's mouth dropped slightly and her eyes widened. Shepard immediately caught her surprise and smiled. "I know you Tali. I knew you would hack the data pad that's why I took some of the firewalls off." Shepard explained.

"That's why it was so easy…" She sighed giving Shepard an innocent smile. "I should have known Shepard…"

"I'm quite surprised you didn't," Shepard said laughing at the end.

"So what are we going to do?" Tali asked.

"I think all we can do is wait for this, Krog to show himself." Shepard explained.

"You know Shepard… His name isn't all that creative, even for a Krogan." Tali said smirking.

"How is it not… Oh… Krog, Krogan…" Shepard said.

"Hopefully he isn't as creative as his name." Tali said.

"We can only…" Shepard started, but a large crack in the nearby woods brought his attention and his gun around.

There standing in the trees stood a large Krogan with more scars than the woods he was standing in. Shepard saw that he wasn't carrying any weapons or at least no weapons that he could see. Krog smiled and began to clap his hands together.

"Bravo Shepard… I've been standing here for almost ten minutes now and you finally realized I was here," Krog said with a large smile.

"What do you want?" Shepard demanded.

"I want you Shepard…" Krog said with a more serious tone.

"Why?" Shepard asked lowering his weapon slightly.

"In my books Shepard, you are the highest on the list for 'big game hunters'." Krog said brandishing another crooked smile.

"So you're here… to hunt me?" Shepard asked.

"Yes… and it will be glorious…" Krog said clenching his fist in front of his face and shaking it. "I mean, look around you Shepard. What better environment could you ask for?"

Shepard took his time to glance at the few trees surrounding Krog. It was going to be a long day indeed.

"So why haven't you killed me yet?" Shepard asked referring to the ten minute span that any good marksman could claim.

"What would be the fun in that? I want to savor this moment." Krog said grinning ever wider causing the deep scars around his mouth to bend open revealing the soft pink scar tissue.

"So when do you want to begin?" Shepard asked taking a few steps back to join Tali's side.

"I hoping to begin now." Krog said frankly.

"Now?" Shepard asked.

"Now!" Krog yelled excitedly.

The side wall of Shepard and Tali's camp instantly exploded. The pod that held the assault rifles and snipers quickly brightened and melted away under a stream of thermite. Shepard turned to look at the damage, but found himself turning quickly back to keep his eye on Krog. The trees were bare of any Krogan. Tali lifted her shotgun off of her back and attached her knife to the end. She breathed out as she covered Shepard's rear. The crackle of the fires and exploding thermal clips deafened both of their sense to the movement in the dark forest perimeter. Tali turned just in time to see a dark shape run past a group of trees.

"Shepard! He's coming around on the left!" Tali yelled.

Shepard turned and caught sight of the Krogan running through the trees. He fired at him, but he watched his bullets deflect off of the surrounding trees. Krog was faster than any Krogan he had ever seen.

"We need to get out of the open!" Shepard yelled to Tali, but before they could move the woods broke open with a large Krogan running straight for them.

Shepard turned and fired at him, but was amazed to see the bullets curve harmlessly around him. He dove hard to the left to avoid the Krogan charge, but he was clipped on his right shoulder sending him off balance. He landed less than gracefully in front of Tali who immediately helped him up. He had just regained his footing when he caught sight of the large Krogan turning a full 180 degrees and regaining his charge at him. He turned to tell Tali something, but he caught sight of her running past him, towards the Krogan.

"Tali! No!" Shepard yelled firing over her shoulder at the Krogan.

Tali, with the freedom from the inflexible suit managed to grab the top of his armor and send herself front flipping over him. She also managed to slide her sharp knife across his armor and face. She landed softly on the other side of him and ran a few steps before she turned back to the Krogan who stopped in his tracks.

"Well, well, well…" Krog said turning obliviously away from Shepard. "It appears I've felt the kiss of a quarian warrior…" Krog said sliding his finger across the deep cut on his face. "I have to say… This is the first injury that I have received in nearly one hundred years, but even more surprising, this is the first in my entire life that I've seen a quarian without their suit on, though I've seen my share of dead quarians in my life." He laughed at his own deviousness.

He grunted twice before he sent himself in another charge towards Tali. Tali immediately ran towards him again. She pretended to jump, but instead slid through his legs sliding the knife across the Krogan's exposed thighs. Krog stumbled only slightly as he finished his charge. He turned back to Tali who had taken her place next to Shepard. Krog didn't even respond to the pain. He took a few steps toward them without the least sign of limping. He smiled again.

"This is getting exciting!" Krog exclaimed. "I expected to find only Shepard on this rock, but it appears that I've found two prizes. 'Tali' I think I heard you being called… hmm… You must me the Tali'Zorah vas Normandy I've heard about on occasions." Krog laughed as she slightly dropped her guard in surprise. "This is quite an honor on my part," Krog said giving a courteous bow.

"Why are you giving us this much respect?" Tali asked.

"I don't want to kill you quite yet…" Krog said smiling again.

"You don't seem like any Krogan I've seen." Shepard said.

"I get that a lot from my prey…" Krog said.

"Why is that?" Shepard asked.

"Simple Shepard. I know what it takes to survive. A balance between Brain and Brawn. I'm not ready to be killed by some human and quarian couple who are stuck on a planet." Krog explained.

Shepard nodded to Tali. They both ran in opposite directions around Krog who merely watched them. They both ran directly on both sides of him and turned to run directly at him. Shepard had also pulled out his knife and charged with the same speed as Tali. They both reached Krog at the same time. Krog, with a quickness unknown to Krogans instantly had both of them dangling off of the ground as he held them by their necks.

"Did you really think that was going to work?" He asked Shepard.

He turned his attention to Tali who struggled frantically to get out of the vice-grip hold she was in. He merely smiled and threw her with a strength that was way to strong to be a Krogan. She landed nearly fifteen feet away landing roughly on a log. The landing instantly knocked the wind out of her as she tried to steady herself. Krog turned back to Shepard and smiled.

"Now… Where were we Shepard?" Krog asked as a trickle of blood managed to drip off of his face.

He heard a large bang and a small prick of pain from his chest. He looked down and regarded the smoking hole in his armor. The stream of blood that began to ooze from the hole only excited him further. He looked back up at Shepard smiling.

"Bravo, bravo Shepard! You are not disappointing me! But may I add that if you shoot me one more time you will kill me!" Krog said.

The small empty click that he heard later was music to his ears. He laughed hard at the helpless commander in front of him. He suddenly stopped when he heard a shotgun pump behind him. A sound that surprised him at first, but merely stopped his laughter; the smile was still spread across his face. He stumbled forward as the large, close-range blast collided with his back. He threw Shepard over against a tree before he turned to see Tali holding a smoking shotgun; a small trickle of blood dripped from her mouth as she breathed heavily.

"Quarian has some bite!" Krog said laughing at the end.

He walked towards her with that same piercing smile. She fired another round at him, but before the bullet shards collided with their mark, Krog appeared to phase out of existence sending the shards into the ground behind him. She fired once more, but this shot fired into the air as Krog grabbed the front of her shotgun and jerked it upward. He pushed the whole shotgun back breaking Tali's nose with her own shotgun. He broke the shotgun over his knee and grabbed Tali's neck again.

She swung her legs around trying to kick the Krogan in his three balls, but the outstretched arm prevented such a move. Tali's voice was ragged from the grip of the choke, but it also gurgled as blood began pour down her throat. With his free arm, Krog felt his back where Tali had managed to get a shot off. Most of the armor was intact, but the basic integrity of the armor was shattered.

Krog took a breath in as he regarded the squirming quarian in his hands. "You know you sting like the biting flames of a Kraken Crawler…" Krog said.

Tali spit blood and saliva on his face. He merely smiled as he wiped the blood off.

"Feisty little quarian aren't we?" Krog said tightening his grip on her neck causing her to choke even more.

"Let her down Krog!" Shepard roared as he walked towards them holding his cracked ribs.

Krog turned to Shepard bringing Tali around with him. He merely smiled at them. He caught sight of the small piece of glowing rock on Shepard's hand. He stared at it curiously trying to remember where he had seen the same rock before. He merely smiled as he remembered. He lifted one of Tali's hands and looked at it.

"You love this woman?" Krog said smiling.

"I told you to put her down!" Shepard yelled.

"Do you love this woman!?" Krog yelled.

"Yes! I do! Now put her down!" Shepard roared.

"Or you will do what?" Krog asked as Tali began to go limp fading in and out of consciousness.

"This!" Shepard yelled as the energy built around him and sent his body flying towards the wall of a Krogan. He smashed hard into the Krogan's chest sending him off balance, dropping Tali to the ground. Shepard felt his crack rib pop as it completely broke. He quickly bent down and grabbed Tali who was barely conscious. He turned and focused enough of his energy to charge a good thirty feet away before the pain in his chest drove him out of the charge. He merely ran away from the smoldering campsite. The distant laugh of the Krogan burned a hole in his ears.

"You can run Shepard, but you can't hide!" The Krogan bellowed.


	24. Chapter 24: The Promise

The tree branches whipped into to Shepard's face as he ran through the forest. Tali's weight almost became nonexistent as the adrenaline began pumping through his system. Tali still blinked in and out of consciousness. Every once and awhile Shepard heard her take in a gurgled breath. He found a small dip under some tree limbs. The dip opened to a hole that lead underneath the tree and into a dark cave. Shepard took his chance and jumped down. He cracked his spent thermal clip and tossed it into the hole causing it to glow. He found that it opened out the further in the cave went. He turned to Tali who had propped herself on the bank, but her head kept dropping as the blood continued to drip from her nose.

"Tali! We need to hide! There is a cave in this hole. I need you to crawl in there and be quiet." Shepard told her as he rubbed the blood from her chin. He saw that she was shaking and her eyes were barely open.

"Wh-what… abo… yough…Scheypard?" She struggled to ask through the breaths and blood.

"I'll be right behind you! Now go!" Shepard yelled pushing her over to the hole.

She crawled slowly into the hole and rolled when she made it to the other side. She barely raised her head up to see Shepard crawling in after her. He picked up a rock from nearby and placed it against the entrance blocking all but the soft orange glow of the burning thermal clip. He sat back to where Tali had managed to sit up.

"You look horrible…" Shepard said, wiping the dirt and grime from her face.

"Howhg bad isth it?" Tali asked with a smile.

"Your nose has a new shape…" Shepard said reaching up to it.

"Cahn it begh fiktsed?" Tali said with a quiver as Shepard grabbed her nose lightly.

"Yes…" Shepard said staring into her eyes.

"Jush du it…" Tali said.

"When I do, you need to try to be as quiet as you can. Ok?" Shepard asked tightening his grip on her broken nose.

Tali merely nodded as a tear ran down her cheek, and she grabbed the rocks around her. Shepard looked away as he jerked his hand over. He felt the nose set back into place along with the jerk from Tali as he did that. A small whimper and a muffled cry in her breathing only made him tear up. He looked back to Tali who was still covered in blood. Shepard pulled out a small first aid kit and pulled out simple gauze pads. He rolled them up and stuffed them into Tali's nose. He ripped a piece of his shirt off and wiped the blood that had ran down Tali's face.

"There. You're looking beautiful again." Shepard said with a smile as he cleared up a few more spots of blood.

Tali only smiled as her eyes slowly closed and her head slumped over. Shepard leaned against her chest and heard her heartbeat and steady breathing.

"Just rest Tali vas Normandy. You deserve it." Shepard said running his two fingers across her cheek.

He found a pool of water in the cave and soaked his cloth in it and draped them over her. He had to keep her moist with this water or a simple infection could kill her off instead of the blood loss. Shepard reached over to Tali's left leg and pulled out her knife and lifted his from his pack. He looked at Tali sleeping for a few more moments before he slid the ring off of his finger and placed it in her hands.

"Give this back to me when I'm done ok?" Shepard asked.

He rose and listened carefully to the small sounds around the outside of his hiding place. He slowly slid his way out of the cave and placed the rock back over the gap. He took one last glance at the cave and questioned his motives. He could see Tali's expression when she awoke to discover him missing and his ring in her hand. The grief she would go through as she stumbled around the dark cave to the only exit. He shrugged it off as he heard a voice calling for him in the distance.

"Shepard! Where are you!?" Krog said merrily followed by a series of large explosions.

Shepard stood up and looked over the hill to see the shape of the large Krogan emerging from the smoke of his explosives. He ran over to a nearby tree and hid behind it. He listened to his heartbeat. He listened to Krog's footsteps through the woods. They became harmonic beating as one. The steps were heading his way. The adrenaline amplified the noise. Krog was stepping on Shepard's ears. The final crack of the stick brought Shepard around the tree with both knives.

Krog wasn't there. Shepard ducked as he turned to feel an arm graze over his hair as he turned. The two knives grazed the armor, but they still managed to leave sufficient gashes in them. Krog brought his other arm down which Shepard rolled from. The fist broke the log and buried itself five inches into ground. Krog easily pulled it out and turned to look at Shepard. The look in Krog's eyes were of total lunacy. The whole fear of his own death and the victory over killing Shepard were fueling his Krogan hormones.

Shepard brought a kick up into Krog's face sending him two steps back, but no damage was done to the adamant Krogan Battle "Elite". Shepard found that the slashes that Tali had managed to inflict on the Krogan had already patched themselves up. Shepard jumped up off of his back and held a strong defensive pose. Krog merely stood there admiring his swordsmanship.

"You know Shepard… You have lasted the longest against me, and you haven't even really ran from me like my previous prey!" Krog said laughing at the end.

Shepard lunged forwards bring the knives in two awkward angles at Krog. Krog managed to grab both of the knives with his bare hands. Shepard kicked the Krogan in the chest as hard as he could. Krog let go of the knives as he steadied himself from the kick. He took a few steps back before he dug his feet into the soft jungle floor and charged forwards again. Shepard spun around him and planted a grenade covered in tree sap against Krog's back. Krog reached back to grab it, but his arms couldn't reach the spot directly behind his back. He turned to Shepard with only a smile.

"Bravo! Shepard! I'm proud that you managed to…" Krog started to say, but the explosion cut him off.

Shepard jumped behind a tree before the explosives went off. He felt the rush of hot air fly past him as he shielded his eyes from the debris. He looked around the tree after the explosion had ended. The smoke billowed from a large black crater. A small tired smile broke through Shepard's tired face, but instantly faded away as a dark shape materialized in the smoke.

"Like I was saying…" Krog said more strained than usual. "That was quite a trick on your part."

The smoke finally cleared and Shepard saw to his dismay the Krogan still standing though the smile was not smeared across his face anymore. The whole left side of the Krogan's armor was broken and chipped, but not much damage to the rest of the armor was seen. The left side of his face was also black and burnt badly. It was a small victory, but the shear strength of this Krogan was beyond measure.

"You don't have to die!" Shepard yelled as Krog took a few strained, yet proud steps toward him.

"This is what I live for Shepard! The ultimate prize!" Krog said with that smile beginning to fade back.

Shepard tried to think of something to tell the crazed Krogan to stop him, but as he thought of something he noticed the burnt flesh on the left side of his began to peel away revealing new skin.

"That's not possible…" Shepard said to himself as he slowly retreated away from the advancing Krogan.

"You can't kill me Shepard! No one can!" Krog bellowed with the loudest and craziest of his laughs following. He stumbled slightly and coughed out some dark smoke.

Shepard ran behind the tree he had backed up to right in time to see the Krogan's fist disintegrate half of the tree. The tree cracked under its own weight and began to fall where Krog and taken a chunk out of it. He ran around another tree just in time for another fist to break the tree. He turned and threw one of his knives which found its mark. He slammed with a crunch into the side of the Krogan's head. He merely looked at it and gave a small laugh as he pulled it out and threw it back at him.

Shepard barely dodged it as it grazed his cheek. The dodge alone gave Krog enough time to reach Shepard. Shepard stood only to meet the strong hands of the Krogan around his neck. The Krogan lifted him up and slammed him against one of the trees. Shepard dangled from his hands helplessly flailing around. Krog's laughter slowly began to build as he watched Shepard's futile attempt to escape. He loosened his grip just enough to ask him a question.

"Any last words, prey?" Krog asked.

"Jump…" Shepard said.

"What?" Krog asked confused.

He looked down and noticed another grenade on the ground. He looked back up at Shepard with his crooked smile.

"Touché," Krog's final words were before the explosion took both of them.

Shepard felt the heat of the explosion rise up from under him. He managed to look over to the small hide out that he had hidden Tali. He noticed she was part ways out of the hole. He saw her reaching for him, and her mouth was open, but he couldn't hear what she was saying over the rush of the explosion. He closed his eyes before the explosion hit him.

Tali had just managed to crawl through the hole when she saw Krog holding Shepard in the air. She looked down at the blinking light and saw the grenade. She looked back up a Shepard and reached out to him like she could save him.

"Shepard! No!" Tali screamed.

The explosion rocked the ground around her and completely destroyed the tree that Shepard was held up against. She shielded her eyes from the bright explosion. She slowly turned back to the carnage that was in front of her. The sound of falling tree limbs and crashing of the trees around where the explosion had been set off. She stared in complete disbelief at the large dust cloud in front of her. The ring in her hand burned as she squeezed it tightly. Her heart jumped a few beats when a dark shape began to emerge from the dust.

Krog fell from the dust cloud with one leg bent nearly 90 degrees. He fell to the ground and writhed in pain. Most of the Krogan was burnt beyond recognition with a few points up his leg where bone was visible, but from what Tali could tell, the Krogan was still very much alive.

"Shepard! You coward!" Krog yelled.

He looked down at his broken leg and merely grabbed it and snapped it back. Tali was frozen halfway out of her hole as she watched the Krogan stand back up and look into the dust cloud. He turned from it and caught sight of Tali. The smile spread across his face, but the missing eye and charred body made the smile that much more menacing. He limped his way over to her. He grabbed one of Shepard's knives that had been blown out of the tree from the explosion.

"If I can't have Shepard! The I'll settle with you!" Krog yelled as he limped over to the hole.

Tali tried to turn around and get back into the hole, but Krog already grabbed a hold of her short, but long enough, hair. He yanked her out of the hole and held her up in front of him. He placed the knife on her neck, but he didn't seal the deal. He looked into Tali's eyes. She wasn't even looking at him. She was still looking at the dust cloud. The tears in her eyes jerked buried emotions in his calloused heart. He removed the knife from her neck and put her down. He turned toward some direction in woods and merely began walking.

Tali completely ignored him. She ran over to the large dust cloud and fell to her knees. The tears poured from her eyes as her eyes looked around the destruction. The overwhelming sadness began to jerk more than tears out of her as she felt herself begin to jerk with emotion. She buried herself in her hands and cried loudly. Loud enough so that Krogan could hear her. She almost jumped when she felt a hand fall on her shoulder behind her. She turned to see Shepard swaying back and forth behind her. The smoke was still rising from his shoulders, and his nose was clearly broken. She smiled just in time to see Shepard collapse in front of her.

She didn't know how it was even possible, but she managed to calm herself enough to keep her secret away from the Krogan. She picked up Shepard's legs and dragged him back to their cave. She somehow managed to push him through the hole with her meager strength. She joined him inside the cave moments later. She propped him in a comfortable spot and sat back on a rock, but she couldn't wave aware the shear exhaustion that she was experiencing at that moment too. Her vision blurred as the light from the cave began to fade. The sounds of night merely played as a lullaby as she slept.

* * *

Krog stumbled back to his ship. He smiled as he fell into its open doors and felt the hard interior. He flipped open a panel on his Omni-tool and saw Shepard laying in the cave. He smiled at it as he dragged his body into the captain's chair of his ship.

"We'll meet again Shepard… I can promise you that… You have my word…" Krog said to himself as he closed the link and started his ship. He was sick of this planet, and his bones hurt. He also felt the hole where his eye used to be. He grunted at the discovery, but looked over to the jars of cybernetic eyes that were placed along the wall. "All in due time… all in due time…"


	25. Chapter 25: An Old Friend

Shepard's vision was blurry as he opened his eyes to the dark cave. The cave slowly leaned to the left and then to the right sending Shepard off balance. He looked out the hole in the side of cave and saw that the outside too was swaying. His mind began to piece together the events of the night before. He finally grabbed his head and tried to stop the dizziness that was plaguing his eyes. He looked over to the side of the cave to find Tali leaning against the side of the rock with her shotgun poised on the rock at the cave entrance. He smiled as he listened to her breath heavily as she slept soundly. The mud and blood on her hands and face drew Shepard's attention to his own mangled body.

The pain began to sink back into existence as his muscles protested against his movements. He sat back down on the hard cave floor. The broken rib in his chest screamed at him and his quick breath in from his rib reminded him of his nose. The bandage that was wrapped around his ribs tightly and the bandages up his burnt legs began to feel more like ovens, but it held the majority of the pain back. From what Shepard could see, he had some third degree burns on his legs and arms.

He sat back and reflected on that last encounter with Krog. There was no possible way that he had survived that explosion. He was directly over it yet here he was in this dark cave. The memories of that day came back to him. He remembered after he closed his eyes he felt Krog hit him in the chest. He felt the heat of the explosion, but beyond that, it was a blur.

He looked down at his chest to see a box-like outline through the slightly browned clothing. He moved it in the light to try to see if it was only shadows, but there was clearly an outline on his chest. He heard Tali begin to stir. She turned and looked at him with sleepy eyes that immediately opened wide when she saw him sitting up.

"Shepard!" She yelled as she dove over into his lap hugging him and smothering her face in his chest.

"Good to see you too!" Shepard said.

"I was so worried!" Tali screamed into his chest.

"What happened?" Shepard asked as he looked around the cave.

"You don't know?" Tali asked pulling away from him and looking into his eyes.

"I have no idea… I was sure that I had just killed myself." Shepard said nodding to himself.

"Well…" Tali said as she brought a small broken device over to Shepard. "This was strapped to your chest when I found you…"

"What is it?" Shepard asked.

"An emergency shield generator…" Tali said.

"That means…" Shepard started.

"Yes, Shepard. Krog saved your life, putting his own in danger." Tali said looking at him.

"But… I-he… why?" Shepard asked. "I'm pretty sure he wanted to kill me."

"He did Shepard. **He **wanted to kill you." Tali explained.

"I guess he did, but that doesn't explain why he called me a coward…" Shepard said lost in his own thoughts.

"I don't know either." Tali said leaning back against the same wall face as Shepard.

"So where is Krog?" Shepard asked.

"He left…" Tali answered.

Shepard sighed. "How many more days until we get off of this planet? I'm all funned out." Shepard said with a hint of sarcasm.

Tali opened her Omni-tool and flipped through the logs. "Six more days…" She answered.

"Great…" Shepard answered. "Let's get back to the camp and see what survived.

"I don't think your in any…" She started to say, but Shepard had already pulled himself up. "Why do you have to be so stubborn Shepard?"

"I wouldn't be here if I wasn't…" Shepard said with a smile.

They returned to the charred campsite. Not much was left in terms of rations. The hut was still standing, and Tali's box of goodies were still together. The broken glass and pieces of splintered wood were scattered everywhere. Tali and Shepard's mood took quite a slump upon seeing their campsite in ruins, but their interlocked hands drove them through the dismay. Shepard stepped out a few fires and looked inside of their shelter. He turned to Tali and gave her a thumbs up and crawled inside. She followed him in.

The soft pieces of fabric that they had placed on the pad were instant soothers to their bodies that had endured at least six hours of hard cave walls. Shepard flopped onto the far side of the tent while Tali took the near side. She didn't lay their long before she slid herself onto Shepard draping her legs on each side of him. She bent over on him and looked into his eyes. Shepard looked at Tali in the same way.

"Cheated death again Shepard…" Tali said as her lips neared Shepard's.

"I'm getting quite good at it…" Shepard said with a smile as he closed his eyes to receive his kiss. "And I always get the girl. I'm a true-blue 007."

"True-blue 007?" Tali asked laughing at her own question.

"True-blue is just a human expression for a real life version of… 007. Well, that's a classic human movie series that was created back in the 1900s." Shepard explained

"What's it about?" Tali asked placing her hands on his chest to prop herself up.

"It's about a spy who risks his life saving the world from mad men, and always in the end he… seems… to…" Shepard drifted off as Tali slid the robes off of her shoulders dropping them on top of him. Shepard smiled as he looked at Tali who smiled back to him. "Now how am I ever going to tell you about James Bond 007 if you do that?"

Tali bent over and kissed Shepard again, but a bit more deeply than before. Shepard turned her over so she was on the bottom looking up at him. The excitement of the heated passion began to burn through Tali's smile.

"Will I ever get a break?" Shepard asked as Tali tightened her legs around him. Tali responded by reaching up to his shoulders and pulling him down to kiss her again. "I'll take that as a no…"

Though most of Shepard's body still burned and ached from the broken bones and third degree burns he still managed to enjoy himself. Tali, on the other hand, who still had blood and dirt on her, seemed completely restless and full of energy. Shepard decided that this would be his gift to her. As things started to get more heated. Shepard stopped her.

"You know we are filthy…" Shepard said.

"I like your thinking Shepard…" Tali said with a final kiss.

She loosely wrapped her robes around her which hopelessly didn't cover anything at all. They both ran down to the side of the spring. The damp grass on their bare feet soothed their soreness, the water melted away their fears, and their touch brought back the happiness. The near-death experience seemed to only excite them more, and neither seemed the least bit traumatized by it. They both assumed it was because it was becoming a common occurrence.

The next six days were quite relaxing with mainly sleeping and lounging as the wounds healed. The Normandy came by and picked them up about halfway through their next day. Tali bottled as much of the water as she could and included a specimen jar of it to give to Mordin. She had fixed her suit and had put it back on before the Normandy picked them up. She didn't want anyone else to see her face. Shepard walked back to his Cabin and sat back down to look through his mail.

"Over 2000 messages…" Shepard quietly said to himself. "Great…"

One message caught his eye as a quickly scrolled over the countless messages. His jaw nearly snapped off when he saw the sender and that responses had been given to it.

"That's the last time I let Garrus take command…" Shepard said sarcastically too himself.

He flipped open the message and read over the name slowly so he could take in the name. He couldn't believe she was still bothering him, but he decided to hear her out.

_Dear Shepard,_

_I know Garrus is receiving all of these messages, but I'll still address them to you. I want to see you again Shepard. I've wanted to meet up with you ever since you betrayed Cerberus! Good job by the way Skipper. I wanted to know if you wanted to meet on Illium. I'll be stationed there for some time, and wondered if you would like to have a drink with me. I hope to see you sometime. I'm glad you betrayed Cerberus. I thought I lost you again._

_Love,_

_Ash_

Shepard grabbed the bridge of his nose as he thought about his dilemma. He reached over to the small intercom button and flipped it to engineering.

"Hey Tali?" Shepard asked.

"Yes Shepard?" She asked excitedly.

"Want to go to Illium?" He asked her quietly.

"Of course Shepard…" Tali said in a long loving drone.

Shepard flipped the intercom to Joker. "Joker! Plot a course to Illium!" Shepard commanded.

"Aye commander!" Joker responded.

Shepard walked over to the elevator to leave, but as he was about to press the summon button the doors opened with Jack standing there. She jumped slightly when she saw that Shepard was standing right in front of her.

"I need to tell you something…" She strained to say.

"It's ok Jack… I don't blame you for leaving us on that planet… It was a accident." Shepard said with a smile as he patted her shoulder and boarded the elevator.

Jack simply shrugged to herself and returned to the elevator. "Engineering?" Shepard asked.

"Yes…" Jack responded.

The elevator doors clicked closed and opened in engineering. Jack walked back down to her 'room' while Shepard walked into the door directly behind Tali. She heard the door open and she knew who it was, but she didn't turn around. She merely kept working, but the smile on her face made her miss a few buttons. Shepard put his head on her shoulder and she laughed.

"So… What do you say we get the human marriage out of the way on Illium?" Shepard said into the audio receptor on the side of her helmet.

"That would be… amazing Shepard…" Tali said as she turned around.

Shepard took a few more steps forward causing Tali to have to bend backwards onto her panel. This only made her laugh as Shepard began his casual flirting.

"When will we get there?" Tali asked.

"Three hours…" Shepard said with a smile.

"What should I wear? I mean… wow! I should probably- no-no-no-no… I think I should wear something white-no-violet…" Tali continued.

Shepard let her continue rambling for some time. She stopped abruptly after she had discussed the different dresses with the drive core and turned her attention back to Shepard.

"I'm rambling again… aren't I?" Tali asked.

"Yes, but I have a solution," Shepard said with a smile.

"I would like to know…" Tali said grabbing his hands.

"You, Miranda, and Mordin can go dress shopping while I take care of some business." Shepard explained.

"Why Mordin?" Tali asked tilting her head in confusion.

"Because he's smart." Shepard answered.

"Why would that help?" Tali asked.

Shepard merely shrugged and smiled at her.

"If you want to use some of that water so you don't have to wear your suit to the wedding then go right ahead." Shepard told her.

"I don't think I'm ready to show them…" Tali said uneasily shifting her eyes around.

"The drink some of the water, and I'll just take your mask off when we have to kiss." Shepard reassured her.

"And they won't see my face?" Tali asked.

"No… I'll make sure of that…" Shepard said with a smile.

He turned and left after his embrace with Tali. His face turned a more serious tone as Ashley's message flashed in his memory. He would have to make his little 'reunion' short, but he knew Ashley was going to have a fit.


	26. Chapter 26: Human Marriage

The cityscape of Illium glowed with a deep toned purple as the ship docked into the reserved landing bay. The crew disembarked with Shepard taking up the rear of the group. He watched Tali, Miranda, and Mordin break off and walk to the clothing district. Tali gave him an excited wave back to him as she faded around the corner. Shepard waved back and turned down the next corridor, towards the bar. Shepard walked up to the door to the bar and took a breath before he walked through. Ashley was sitting at the table directly in front of him. A small martini sat half full in front of her. Her posture was relaxed and patient, but Shepard could see that she was agitated.

He walked through the crowd until Ashley saw him. Her eyes lit up as she quickly stood and ran to him. She locked her arms around him in an embrace, but Shepard didn't give her back the same strength. Ashley must have been to excited to notice because she went back to the table and sat down.

"It's been a long time Skipper." Ashley started.

"Yes it has…" Shepard responded without emotion.

Ashley shifted in her seat and opened her mouth a few times to say something, but she couldn't make the words get past the lump in her throat. Shepard noticed this and knew what she wanted to say. It annoyed him how she truly thought that he still loved her like he had before they fought Saren. He shook his head at his own thoughts. _How could I have been so stupid!_ _I should have seen and expressed myself more to Tali! I should have opened my eyes all those years ago! _Shepard managed to maintain a calm composure through his mental battle.

"What I said on Horizon…" Ashley finally started.

"Your not here to apologize to me again, are you?" Shepard asked.

Ashley stumbled with her words after Shepard's cold tone. "I think I am… yes, Shepard."

"It's already too late Ashley…" Shepard said as the waitress placed a martini down by Shepard. Shepard gave her a sign to keep them coming until he told her to stop.

"What do you mean it's too late?" Ashley asked angrily.

"How can you not know, Ash?" Shepard said angrily as he downed his Martini.

"I don't know what you mean…" Ashley said in a less than defensive tone.

"Really? After we met on Horizon, I was happy again, but you… you didn't seem the least bit happy. You were mad at me! For what? Because I was working for Cerberus! I was dead Ashley! For two years, I was dead! Cerberus brought me back! Now all of a sudden you don't like me because I was under Cerberus's control? I mean! Wake up Ash! You ruined our relationship!" Shepard said with delicate and piercing anger.

"Your blaming it on me? I wasn't working for Cerberus was…" Ashley started to say.

"There you go again! If you truly loved me then you would not care so much of where my allegiance stood! You seem like you only loved me because I was the best Alliance soldier. If that's the case then I don't love you Ash." Shepard said leaning in close and saying the last words slowly.

Ashley's face turned read. With anger or embarrassment? Shepard didn't know. He downed another martini. Shepard took a breath in and collected himself. He reached over and grabbed her hands.

"Our relationship may be over, but that doesn't mean that we are enemies. We can still be friends, and I will respect just like I always have. You were on my crew, and in a way, you are still a part of my crew. I just don't see a relationship working anymore." Shepard said quietly.

Ashley merely glared at him with hurt eyes which slowly filled with tears. She picked up her drink and tried to act casual, but her hand shook too much. She took a few sips before giving up. She took a staggered breath in and looked back to Shepard. She opened her mouth to say something, but before she could say anything a familiar voice spoke up at the side of the table.

"Ashley? Is that you?" Tali asked happily.

Ashley cleared her tears from her eyes and cleared her throat. She always respected Tali even if she was quarian. She turned to Tali and smiled at her though, from what Shepard could see, it was strained.

"Hey Tali… How's it going?" Ashley asked solemnly.

"It's going great Ashley! I'm getting married!" She said excitedly.

"Really?" Ashley asked gaining intrigue. "I didn't think quarians had marriages."

"Technically we don't, but I'm going to get married twice, a human marriage and a quarian bonding!" Tali explained excitedly.

Shepard sank back from Ashley. He knew that he wouldn't be able to stop the inevitable discovery. He merely downed another martini because it was going to get interesting pretty fast.

"Why a human marriage?" Ashley asked.

"Because I'm marrying a human!" Tali said with a giggle.

"Who…" Ashley started to ask, but she then noticed the brilliant ring that Tali was wearing. It looked so familiar. He retraced her memory back to when she saw it. She remembered when Shepard grabbed her hands. She remembered the glowing purple ring glowing in her face. She shrugged it off as just a fashion change of Shepard, but there was no mistaking that quality of rock. She looked over to Shepard in disbelief at the same time Tali walked over to Shepard.

"Shepard… You're not…" Ashley rambled out, but upon seeing Shepard stand and wrap his hands around Tali's waist. "What the hell, Shepard!" Ashley screamed as she threw her seat back. The bar became quiet as everyone's attention turned towards them.

"You didn't tell her yet… Did you?" Tali asked quietly to Shepard.

"Umm… No…" Shepard answered.

"You dump me!? For what!? A quarian!?" Ashley yelled slamming her fist on the table.

"Ashley… please. Your making a scene…" Shepard said holding his hand out to try to calm her.

"A scene!? I'm making a scene!? What about you!? Your marrying a quarian! What bigger scene is that!?" Ashley yelled.

A turian walked over to Ashley and put a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but your disturbing other people in the bar…" the turian said calmly.

Ashley turned to him with anger burning in her eyes. She pushed him aside and stormed out of the bar. The patrons sat staring at the door for some time before they all turned to the human and quarian standing in the circle.

"Nothing to see here…" Shepard said.

"I'm sorry Shepard… I didn't know…" Tali said sadly.

"It's not your fault. Don't blame yourself. She needs to figure this out on her own." Shepard said with his eyes still planted on the door to the bar. He turned back to Tali and smiled. "So did you find a nice dress?" Shepard asked changing the subject.

"Oh Keelah! You should see it! It's so beautiful!" Tali said, excitedly holding up a up a box she was carrying. "I settled on a white and purple combo!"

"I see you compromised on your whole white or purple issue." Shepard said happily. "Has anybody should yet?"

"Everybody on my side is here: Kal'Reegar, Shala'Raan, and a few of my other friends!" Tali said excitedly.

"Well what are we waiting for? Let's get married Ms. Tali'Zorah!" Shepard said.

Tali squealed and ran off. Shepard looked at the six empty martini glasses and sighed. Hopefully he wouldn't be drunk during the ceremony. He turned and walked after Tali. He felt himself smile as he remembered how Tali skipped through the door, and the stares she drew towards her. It made him laugh slightly as he exited the bar and made his way to get his tuxedo.

Most of the people were already sitting at the ceremony. The quarian side were all still standing and chatting, but Shepard's side, which consisted of only his crew, sat and talked to themselves. The asari minister shifted in place as looked back and forth between the small group of quarians and the mismatched group of aliens on the opposite side. She stopped when she saw a human walk up the aisle. He took his place to her left as the turian rose and took his place by the human. One of the female quarians walked to the minister's right. She turned to talk to the human.

"So I just stand here?" Shala asked.

"Basically, yes," Shepard said with a smile.

"Good. I'm not too accustomed to human marriage traditions." Shala explained.

"It's ok." Shepard said turning to the aisle again.

Shala leaned over once more. "Thank-you Shepard. You don't know what this means to all of us." Shala said.

Music began to played over the surround audio system, and everybody turned to look down the aisle. From the behind the corner, a beautiful quarian emerged. A long flowing white veil covered her head and her masked face, which brought a small giggle from Shepard. The long flowing white dress trailed behind her. The dress slowly faded to a soft violet color as it rose up her body. The top section was segmented and designed exactly like Tali's under-suit, which Shepard assumed was the top of her suit. A purple Rannoch flower was clasped on the side of Tali's hood. Shepard could hear the quarians quietly murmur to themselves upon seeing her.

Shepard stood in total awe as Tali walked down the aisle. She never looked away from him. Shepard could tell that she was smiling under her mask and veil. He saw her give him a quick wink, which only made Shepard smile more. He didn't tell the other quarians about their plan for the kiss, and he couldn't wait to see their reaction. He also laughed to himself as he saw that the minister stood in amazement also.

Tali took her place by Shala, who stared at Tali. They hugged and passed a few congratulations and thank-you's. She turned to Shepard with her hands still clasped together on the beautiful array of alien flowers. They couldn't hear the minister speak as they waited for those key words.

"Do you, John Shepard, take, this quarian, to be your lawfully wedded wife?" The minister asked.

"I do." Shepard said as he put his hands around the outside of Tali's hands.

"And do you, Tali'Zorah vas Normandy, take this human, to be your lofty wedded husband?" The minister asked turning to Tali.

Shepard could feel Tali's hands shake, and he could sense that she had tears running down her face.

"I do." Tali said happily.

"Then you may…" the minister started, but stopped part way. Shepard turned and nodded for her to continue with the speech. "Then you may kiss… the bride…"

Shala looked over to the minister in shock. She was in even more shock when Shepard pulled the veil back off of Tali's visor. Shepard reached down and pulled the visor off which drew a collective gasp from the quarian side. Shepard leaned in and gave Tali the longest kiss he had ever given her. Shala didn't know how to react at this shocking event. They stood kissing for the longest time. Shepard's side of the aisle stood up and began clapping and making noise, except for Jack. The quarian side only stared at Shepard and Tali.

Shepard slowly pulled away from Tali and clipped her mask back into place before anybody could get a good look at her. The minister wiped her hand up her sweaty face, and sighed. In all of her years as being a human marriage minister, this was the most awkward she had been in. She turned and smiled at the newlyweds before she took her leave. Tali turned and hugged Shala who leaned in and questioned her safety which she assured was not to be questioned. She also set up the date and time of their quarian bonding ceremony. Tali went over to her respectful side of the aisle and talked excitedly with her 'family'. Shepard walked over to his side and shook hands with everyone. He caught sight of someone leaning against the pillar at the far end of the courtyard.

Shepard walked over to speak with Ashley. Once he got into arms reach of her, he felt a slap on his face. Ashley stared at him angrily.

"I deserved that…" Shepard said rubbing his cheek.

"You deserve far more than that!" Ashley said angrily.

Tali walked up beside Shepard and looked over at Ashley.

"So are you going to die now since Shepard took your mask off?" Ashley asked angrily.

Tali only stared at Ashley and shook her head. She extended her hand that held the flowers and offered it to her. Ashley stared at it, but merely shrugged and through up her hands as she left. Tali lowered and shook her head. Shepard wrapped his arm around her shoulder.

"Don't take it personally… She just needs some time." Shepard explained.

"You know Shepard… A human marriage is a lot easier than a quarian bonding ritual. This felt very informal." Tali said.

"Informal? I planned on making it an enjoyable experience." Shepard said pulling Tali in close.

"It will be quite a challenge for us to get it right, but I'm sure you can do it…" Tali explained.

"I hope there's no Keystone challenges in the ceremony…" Shepard said sarcastically.

Tali hit him on his shoulder and laughed though she wasn't too sure how the ritual would fan out.


	27. Chapter 27: The Gauntlet Awaits

Shepard and Tali sat next to each in the short cab ride back to the administrative wing of Illium. Tali still wore her wedding dress and unconsciously smoothed it out with her hands. She continuously looked up at Shepard, but immediately looked back down to her smooth dress and rubbed the nonexistent wrinkles out of it again. Every time she smoothed her dress, she would pause and look at the ring that was around her finger that always brought her head back up to Shepard.

Shepard sat smiling as he watched Tali fluster over her dress and how she seemed unnerved at his stares. He found it amusing at her nervousness. The cab stopped at the Illium Administration district. Liara stood on the outside of the cab with her hands folded in her lap where she stood. Shepard disembarked the cab and turned to help Tali out of the cab. She didn't feel like she needed to be treated like this, but she found that she enjoyed the attention she was receiving.

"It's good to see you again Tali." Liara said with what seemed to be a humble smile.

"You too Liara…" Tali said taking Liara in a friendly embrace.

"I knew you and Shepard would get together… I just had a feeling you guys shared something…" Liara said with a hint of sadness.

"Thank you Liara. You'll find someone eventually." Tali said.

"I can only hope I'm as lucky as you. If you need anything… just ask and I'll see what I can do…" Liara said.

"I don't think I could ask anything of you Liara." Tali said.

Another cab pulled up and landed beside them. Shala and the other quarians stepped out of their cabs and walked over to Tali.

"I don't know what you did back their Tali, but it was really brave on your part, and hopefully it wasn't a fatal decision on your part." Shala said.

"I'm fine Shala…" Tali said lovingly.

"You better be because the bonding ritual will take place tomorrow back at the Flotilla. You better train Shepard in our ways in that time… I want your ritual to be perfect since this will be a first among permanent bonds between a quarian and a human. Hopefully this will change people's views on us." Shala explained.

"I will Shala… Don't worry Shepard can do it." Tali answered.

Tali walked over to Shepard who was talking to Liara about the 'good old days'. She looped her arm into Shepard who looked over to her briefly and finished his conversation quickly. Liara nodded at the end of Shepard's conversation.

"You look beautiful Tali. Don't let anyone tell you differently." Liara said. She left before Tali could say anything.

Shepard and Tali walked back to the ship. They stood outside of the airlock and looked at each other. Tali laughed at Shepard's glares and folded her hands behind her back. Shepard smiled at her and took note of all the details of her dress.

"That is a perfect dress for you…" Shepard said in a half-whisper.

"I picked it out…" She said swinging herself from side to side.

"What about the people who I sent to help you?" Shepard asked.

"They thought it looked stupid…" Tali said.

"Did you believe them?" Shepard asked.

"No…" Tali said.

"That's what I like to hear. Follow your heart that's what I do." Shepard said pointing to himself with his thumb.

Tali laughed and pressed the green holo-pad for the airlock. She stepped inside and pulled on Shepard's hands pulling him in too. The outside door sealed and the room was instantly decontaminated. Tali pulled her mask off and pulled Shepard in for a long awaited kiss. She felt less guilty now that they were basically half married. She slowly stopped kissing him and smiled as their lips broke apart. She opened her eyes and looked into Shepard's eyes. The glow from her eyes softly illuminated his face because of the proximity of her face to his.

She snapped her mask back on before the door opened to get into the ship. The crew were all huddled around the door when they left. Most clapped and a few yelled with hoots and hollers. Shepard extended his arms out to try to quell the mess of people in front of him, but everyone seemed to be in such a good mood that he let them enjoy themselves. He walked through the crowd with Tali's hand locked with his. He stopped halfway through when he caught sight of Garrus and Miranda.

Garrus and Miranda were standing towards the back of the group. Both were smiling more than usual, or, at least, Miranda did; it was hard to tell if Garrus was smiling. Their hands were interlocked together, and whenever Miranda talked to Garrus, she would pull herself close to him and lean against the side of his armor and put her head almost against his head. Shepard was glad that they weren't shying their relationship to anyone anymore.

Tali began to pull Shepard towards the elevator. They both stepped in and pressed the button for the Captain's Cabin. The doors hissed open and Tali stepped out first holding onto Shepard's hands. She pulled him out of the elevator only slightly before she turned and pressed herself against him. She activated the cybernetic hand's immuno-boost drives and took her helmet off.

"I see you kept your hair," Shepard said after he noticed the few strands escape the back of her helmet.

"It looks good don't you think?" Tali asked unhooking the helmet and pulling it back to reveal the light blue hair that stuck out in random spots. It was a mess to say the least.

"I actually didn't think quarians had hair…" Shepard said as he swayed her back and forth. "But it did look beautiful when we were on that planet and it still looks beautiful." Shepard said with a large smile.

Tali smiled back and laughed in embarrassment as she buried her head in her hands. Shepard pulled her in closer and kissed her softly. Tali raised her hands to Shepard's chin and brought it back to his hair and into his hair. Shepard swept both of his hands through the sides of Tali's short hair and held the back of her head. He pulled her tighter into the kiss before they both broke off. Tali gave another small smile. Before she looked up at Shepard and bit her bottom lip.

"We need to talk about the bonding ritual Shepard…" Tali said taking him over to the side of the bed.

"I am ready to learn!" Shepard said pulling out a small data pad from out of his pocket.

"This is serious Shepard… Shala wants my bonding ritual to be perfect…" Tali said in a more serious tone.

Catching the seriousness of the issue Shepard gained a more attentive view of her. "Ok… What's first?" Shepard asked.

"Well… Normally the ritual consists of just hooking our suit environments together, but an interspecies bonding holds a more daunting ceremony… Mostly to prevent quarians from marrying other species so we can keep our numbers up. First we are going to be cleansed in separate contamination wings of the ship." Tali explained.

"That doesn't sound too bad…" Shepard said.

"That's only the preparation for the initial task!" Tali exclaimed.

"How many tasks are there?" Shepard said leaning in with curiosity.

"At least ten…" Tali said.

"Ten! How long for each?" Shepard asked with shock.

Tali breathed in a couple of times before she could tell him. "Some could take a few minutes… others could take hours…" Tali explained.

"Well… It will be worth it!" Shepard said with a smile.

Tali smiled at Shepard's optimism, but inside she was still dreading the ritual.

"You need to be respectful to all of the leaders of the ritual. Anytime they enter the room you are in, bow your head until they say 'Keelah Se'lai' then you raise your head and say it back. Follow their instructions exactly how they are meant. You will need to interpret the meaning of their tasks and complete each accordingly. Most will be engineering and skill based tasks. You won't be able to talk your way through this." Tali said.

"I will try my best Tali. You know that." Shepard said bringing his hand back through her hair.

Tali closed her eyes as she felt the sensation of Shepard's touch through her hair. She shrugged off the moment of ecstasy and looked back at Shepard.

"I know you will Shepard… I trust that you will give this your all because if you don't they can refuse to bond us." Tali said.

"They will not do that… Shepard said as he fell back on the bed.

Tali fell back in the bed too and cuddled up next to him. She placed her right leg over Shepard's left and rubbed her hand across his chest. She breathed out as she felt Shepard's hand grab her shoulder for support as he turned his body to face her. The sight of Shepard staring directly at her made her heart skip the few beats that she know associated with Shepard's gaze.

"So what happens when we are bonded?" Shepard asked.

"We will be recognized among the Admiralty Board as a legitimate couple, which will, since I am the daughter of a now deceased Admiral…" Tali paused with sadness for a few seconds "… then I will most likely be in line for the Admiralty, show a case to have a joint sharing of the power of Admiralty in the Flotilla even if you are human. Your little speech probably improved my chances too…" Tali said.

"Is that why they are making it this difficult?" Shepard asked.

"Yes, along with everything else." Tali said.

"We will see how it goes then…" Shepard said.

Tali laid beside Shepard and thought a few minutes about the information she had just passed to Shepard. She had just became aware of the reality of bringing a human Admiral to the Flotilla. The outrage and questions, the stares and sneers, but worse… the quarian bureaucracy. She breathed out in frustration at the thought of going through that red tape. She only broke out of her thoughts when she heard a small rumble next to her. She turned over to see Shepard with his eyes closed. He was sleeping. She breathed out and turned over in the bed. She decided that a good night's sleep was the best thing to do before the challenge that awaited them tomorrow. She could only hope that it would go smoothly, but in the back of her mind she knew that the odds of succeeding in this were going to be slim.

The Normandy flew through the confines of deep space. The FTL drive only hummed as the ship moved towards the distant Mass Relay. Joker took a breath in as they neared the jump point on the side of the colossal space structure. It only lasted a second as the helm felt like it was bent into the size of a pin and stretched between all planes of existence. The sensation felt quite invigorating as they exited the jump. The large ring around the Binary star system was colossal to say the least. From the distance of the Mass Relay to the ring it appeared to be only dust, but upon nearing it, the shapes of ships could be seen.

The Migrant Fleet, or Flotilla circled the star system in a perfectly coordinated spin. Each ship spun to keep the ship's cool from the heat of the stars. Smaller fighter crafts blasted towards the Normandy, and upon getting a voice recognition test and password, was sent to the decontamination section of the fleet. Joker wasn't a fan of the decontamination process, but it gave him some time to flip through the extra-net and save a few bookmarks. He leaned back in his chair as the depolarizing glass of the helm's windows tinted the stars enough to be observed by the naked eye.

Miranda and Garrus sat in the medical bay taking another shot for their 'misdeeds'. Miranda could only smile each time that she got them now. Garrus had treated her more human than any other human. She also found the turian physiology very appealing to her. The feeling was new and exciting she guessed. She figured it was because she was so used to humans that she found turians that more appealing. She began to wonder how other aliens were like in bed though she knew that she would have to talk to Garrus about that before she started anything.

Garrus couldn't believe his luck as he stared at the beautiful brown haired human who sat in front of him. He never saw the point of human hair, and he found it quite hideous, but now he saw the beauty of it. The way it flowed in the wind, the way it moved as she moved, the way it felt in his hands. He wanted to have Miranda forever, but the idea of doing what Shepard was doing at that moment only made him inch away from it.

He would wait, but what drove him more off the wall was how he enjoyed the human physiology. He began wondering what quarians looked like, but he knew that he would have to talk both Shepard, Tali, and Miranda before anything like that would ever happen. He felt like he was a total pervert for thinking like that, but the curiosity only drove him further to find the truth. He breathed out as he thought about doing it, but he always avoided brining it up and looking like a stereotypical man. He knew Miranda was adventurous, but he wondered how far she would go.


	28. Chapter 28: The Gauntlet's Challenges

Shepard and Tali disembarked from the ship with their hands laced together. A quarian guard surrounded them and brought them to the main room of the ship. The large group of guards split off at the fork in the hallway of the ship. Tali was escorted down one side while Shepard was led down the other. They maintained eye contact until the edge of the wall blocked their view. Shepard breathed in as he turned his attention back to the end of his hallway. The guards took position on either side of the door while Shepard continued to the door. The door slowly opened revealing a much brighter room on the other side. Shepard walked in and shielded his eyes from the blinding light.

Shepard's vision adjusted to the extreme light. The room appeared to be made of light except for the center table sitting in the middle of the room. Shepard recognized the quarian who was sitting on the opposite side.

"Commander Shepard! A pleasure to meet you again! I found our last visit as such a surprise though don't expect much surprise from me now… I know you." Said the quarian.

"Zaal'Koris… Keelah Se'lai…" Shepard said humbly, bowing his head generously.

"Forgive my rudeness Commander…" Zaal said rising from his seat. "Keelah Se'lai… I see that you want to do this right, especially since this is for Ms. Tali'Zorah…"

"What is my task?" Shepard asked simply.

"Why? Can't you see?" Zaal said motioning down at the table. "We are just going to play a simple game of chess… A game among friends…"

Shepard felt his hand tighten as Zaal referred to him as a friend. He barely held back the anger and took his seat opposite of Zaal. He breathed out as he looked over at all of the pieces and the set up of that all too familiar chess set. He hoped he wouldn't ever see one again since he played chess nearly everyday in that fourteen day span of shear boredom. He was glad that Tali had showed him all of the tricks to the game. Zaal looked at him and scratched his chair forwards to Shepard. He folded his hands and looked at Shepard.

"I'll let you have the honors to go first… I've only been beaten once, and that was from your 'lover', Ms. Tali'Zorah. I believe she is the best in the galaxy which makes me the second best!" Zaal laughed conceitedly.

Shepard only looked at the board as he gave a small sigh. He remembered Tali talking about Zaal's chess prowess. She of course showed him all of Zaal's strategies and told him how to make him trip up. This brought a smile to Shepard's face which he hid by rubbing his mouth. He was going to enjoy seeing how Zaal reacted.

"So let us begin Shepard…" Zaal said as the board hummed to life.

* * *

Tali was seated in at a table in a small room. The guards left and, for the longest time, no one showed up. Tali leaned back in her chair so only two feet were on the ground. She could only guess what degrading task they were making Shepard do at this moment. She sighed as she set her chair back down. The door on the opposite side of the room hissed open; Shala stepped inside of the room.

"Shala… It is good to see you!" Tali said excitedly.

Shala held her hand out to silence the excited young quarian. She walked over to the table and took her seat opposite of Tali. She fiddled with her hands for a second, but ended up lacing them in front of her and sighing.

"Tali…" Shala began in a tone that resembled the tone of a mother's. "I need you to tell me why you have chosen your commander to be your bond…"

Tali felt her body freeze and her heart skip a beat. She didn't feel comfortable telling people her reasons; she normally past them up with a simple 'I have my reasons' answer. She now fiddled with her hands and diverted her attention, but she did so only briefly before looking back into the glowing eyes of Shala who sat patiently on the other side of the table.

"…Because I never met anyone who could see me for who I was…" Tali said almost mournfully. "Even here on the Flotilla, I felt like people merely looked at me as daughter of an Admiral. Shepard… he…he saw past the mask and the rank. He saw me as an ordinary woman. Someone who didn't have any limitations… someone who he could be with…" The words sparked Tali's heart at every memory she had of Shepard.

"But do you think that's what's best for the Flotilla?" Shala asked with almost the same uncomfortably as Tal answered her question.

"Shala! I love Shepard! And-and-and… He loves me more than any other person in the world… I've watched him for so long… I never…" Tali started breaking off again as she lifted her ringed hand that sight alone burned the happiness and passion back into her. "He actually saw me!"

"I want you to answer my question Ta-" Shala started.

"No… It's not the best for the Flotilla… It's the best for me! I gave my life to the Flotilla, and now I want something. I hope the Flotilla will understand my decision because I'm not throwing this opportunity away!" Tali said with her fists clenched.

"I understand Tali'Zorah…" Shala said as she rose. She walked over to the door and opened it, but instead of walking out she stepped to the side and motioned her hand out of the door. "You pass this task, Tali'Zorah vas Normandy!" Shala said, almost losing her composure.

Tali stood and walked over to the door which led into the next room with another table. She looked back at Shala and smiled under her mask. She wanted to hug her so badly, but she didn't want to create any disturbances. She walked through the door which was closed behind her. She didn't fear the tasks anymore.

* * *

Shepard watched as the board played out exactly like Tali said it would. Zaal had sacrificed his pieces to push holes into Shepard's defenses, but happily Zaal didn't see Shepard's hidden plan; the same plan that Tali used to beat him. Every time Zaal moved his piece to where Tali predicted, Shepard smiled to himself. The pieces all fell into place and Shepard made his move. His rook that he had saved from the onslaught slid to the far back of the board. Zaal countered with the only piece he could, which happened to be his bishop. This opened the way for Shepard to place his bishop in Zaal's old bishop position.

Zaal scratched his head as he watched his defenses crumble. He looked up at Shepard only briefly before he looked back down to the inevitable end that was sitting before him. He couldn't win, and he knew it. He breathed out and tipped his king over.

"It seems that you have beaten me Shepard. I applaud you… I guess Tali has taught that loophole in my defenses to you it would seem." Zaal said rising. He extended his hand out to Shepard.

Shepard stood happily and grabbed Zaal's hand and shook it only twice. He smiled at him and gave him a friendly salute as he walked through the unlocked door on the other side of the room. The next challenge awaited him, and nothing was going to stop him now.

The next room was a mess. Wires and data-boards were falling through the ceiling, and many of the panels around the room were in disarray. The electrical was faulty which caused the lights to flicker in uneven intervals. In the middle of the mayhem, stood Daro'Xen. He graciously bowed to her and finished with the traditional greeting. She merely bowed her head.

"Do you know what you have to do here?" Daro asked.

Shepard looked around the room and smiled.

"Clean it?" Shepard asked sarcastically.

"No…" Daro said with a less than amused tone. "There some part or it could be parts to this room that are faulty. I want you to find them and repair them. It must be repaired in order or more damage will be done to this room. You have two hours."

"Only two?" Shepard asked.

"Yes…" Daro said.

"I should get to work then…" Shepard said rubbing his hands together.

* * *

Tali sat in the next chair of the next room. She waited for the next 'interrogator' to enter the room and ask her personal questions about her relationship with Shepard. Instead, she found Zaal walking into the room. She knew he was smiling. She narrowed her eyes and tried to come up with what Zaal was smiling about. Zaal caught that piercing gaze which made him laugh. He took his seat opposite of hers and folded his hands in front of him.

"What do you want Zaal?" Tali asked quietly.

"I just wanted to give you a update on your husband-to-be Tali. No need to get all worked up about it." Zaal said condescendingly.

Tali's heart skipped a few beats as she leaned forwards with curiosity.

"How's he doing? What did he have to do?" Tali asked.

"He had to beat me at a chess match…" Zaal said with the same pride filled voice.

From the tone that Zaal had maintained throughout this conversation, it didn't sound so good for Shepard. Zaal was one of the best chess players in the Flotilla, probably one of the best in the whole galaxy. She, herself had barely beaten the haughty Admiral.

"He beat me…" Zaal said.

Tali nearly squealed with joy, but she knew that's what Zaal wanted.

"I thought you were the 'best' Zaal…" Tali said condescendingly.

"Well it appears the human was tutored by my rival, and knew the loophole in my plan." Zaal said giving Tali the most knowing of stares.

Tali stared at him innocently. The thoughts in her head began to churn as a frenzy of happiness flooded over her, but it was short lived. He had only completed one of the task. A task that Shepard had been incredibly lucky with. She looked back at Zaal.

"What's his next task?" Tali asked.

"I don't know, but Daro'Xen is handling that one." Zaal said with a small snicker at the end.

Daro, in Tali's opinion, was worse than Zaal. She cared nothing more than to create challenges for everyone, most were borderline impossible. Tali sighed as she saw Shepard's odds of success begin to dwindle again.

"So what's my next task?" Tali asked gloomily.

"Task? You don't have any tasks… You've already proven yourself an asset to the Flotilla." Zaal said.

"That's what all this is for? To see his worth?" Tali asked angrily.

"Of course Tali. We need to know that losing your prominent genetic family is worth it…" Zaal said.

"I can't believe this! He has to do all of this because you don't believe he is worth it?" Tali yelled.

"We aren't sure how he…" Zaal started.

"He's saved the galaxy twice!" Tali yelled.

"But how has he served the Migrant Fleet? He has served the Alliance and even Cerberus, but I have yet to see him serve us…" Zaal said.

"He doesn't serve anyone. He does what's right!" Tali said.

"That may be true, but we must keep tradition." Zaal said. "Get some sleep Tali… Shepard's going to have a long night…"


	29. Chapter 29: The Gauntlet's Impact

The hanging wires draped down thickly in Shepard's view. He couldn't see from one side of the room to the other, but strangely that only made him smile. He remembered his two weeks of jungle living with Tali. Even though a crazy hell-bent Krogan tried to kill them, it was one of the most relaxing 'vacations' that Shepard had had in awhile. He flipped open his Omni-tool. Half an hour had already passed, but he didn't feel the least bit of concern.

He scanned the walls of the broken room. Each time he found a problem, he marked it with chalk. Eventually the room looked like a voodoo ritual circle. The arrows and lines on the floor followed by personalized pictographs sealed the deal. Shepard looked at his handiwork. He had only half an hour remaining. He followed his lines and arrows. Each converged to a single point in the middle of the room. Shepard unscrewed the floor panel to reveal a single misaligned subroutine.

With a quick flip, the room's lighting quit flickering and resumed a strong and bright glimmer. Daro walked back into the room and looked around. The bizarre lines and arrows with strange animals and people running on them confused her. She completely disregarded Shepard as she followed the lines up the walls and on the ceiling.

"Very… uhm… good Shepard…" Daro said examining the minute details of a perfect anatomically correct Vesuvian Turian. "Was this all necessary?"

"No. I found the mistake at the beginning of the first hour, but I had to make sure. I used the other hour to trace out the room and find the pattern in the room and how the power fluctuations were impacting the ships core." Shepard said rather quickly and in a single breath.

Daro stared at him with her mouth agape. "You may proceed to the ship…" she said at a loss for words.

"Don't you mean room?" Shepard asked.

"No. The next challenge is on a nearby planet. It was constructed just for such an occasion." Daro said, regaining some of her composure.

"Keelah Se'lai, Daro'Xen vas Moreh." Shepard said humbly.

"Keelah Se'lai, Commander Shepard vas Normandy…." Daro said staring dumbfounded at Shepard as he left the room.

* * *

"You Bosh'tet!" Tali screamed.

She pointed a menacing finger at Zaal who was now standing.

"Please, Tali, contain yourself…" Zaal said, backing up.

"Your playing Shepard! This is all a game! And you! You created it!" Tali said slamming her fist on the table.

"It's tradition Tali. We must keep our culture alive…" Zaal pleaded so she would calm down.

"I don't think 'tradition' means give my husband the hardest challenges that even a well trained quarian would have problems doing! I think your still mad at Shepard being my lawyer! You know… He's beaten you twice now…" Tali said mockingly.

Zaal didn't say a word. He stood in silence as he regarded the rigid form of Tali who clearly had the means to tear him apart. He turned and walked out the door.

"I'll let you think about it. I want you to see how you are treating us, your family, now that your in love with this 'human'." Zaal said as he closed the door.

Tali pushed the random ornaments and trash that was on the table onto the floor. She thought about her actions and her words. She didn't regret any of them. She was fighting for something that she wanted, and she was not going to be beaten by this. Zaal's words echoed in her head. "Your in love with this 'human'." How he had referred to Shepard by his species angered her, but the more she thought about it, the more she remembered what she had said to Shepard.

* * *

"I can't tell you how much what you said means to me, but I understand if you need to find something… someone else. Not that I'm complaining if your still interested… Are you still interested?" Tal asked hopefully.

"I don't want to risk your health, but I'm willing to wait." Shepard said with a smile at the end.

Tali's mind raced with happiness. _He wants to stay with me! He loves me!_ She composed herself enough to respond.

"Thank you… I want you to see what is under this damned helmet. I need to feel your skin against mine. To share myself with you before we fly off into the final battle. I will find a way…"

* * *

The memory was still vivid in Tali's mind. Those few days when Shepard came down to visit her in engineering were her most treasured memories. She clenched her fist at the promise she made.

"I will find a way to make it permanent…" Tali said to herself.

She could feel Shepard's touch on her hands. The sensation even caused her to look down at her three fingered hands. She looked over at the reflective wall of the room and looked at her body. She followed her own curves and found herself to be strikingly beautiful, but the words from her memory nagged at her. _Someone else_. She looked at her quarian legs and back at her hands. Doubt began to take over her mind. She slowly sat back down in her chair; her hands were still stretched out in front of her.

"Why did you have to be a quarian Tali?" She asked herself. Something yanked in her mind, a protest, an outburst, an objection! _What are you talking about Tali? He likes you because of who you are! He won't leave you because you have limitations. He loves you more than anything in this galaxy! Stop doubting yourself and stay strong. One day there will be a way!_

Tali smiled at her own mental battle. She was being stupid, and had let Zaal get under skin. She fumbled with her hands only briefly before standing to leave. She opened the side door to find a cubicle sized room with a single cot laying in it. She sighed at the memory of the cramped living conditions. She remembered Shepard's cabin. She remembered Shepard's touch. She could even feel those securing arms wrap around her. She smiled as she felt herself drift off into a deep sleep. She felt her body fall into the peaceful darkness of a reminiscent dream, a fall of pure weightlessness and misdirection. She wondered how badly Shepard was destroying the tasks. She wondered until sleep took her mind to a faraway place.

* * *

Shepard ran through the dark corridors of a decrepit maze. Each turn seemed to be blocked by a door that needed to be hacked. Every hack felt harder and harder as Shepard strained his senses. He could hear them coming through the corridors. They gave small growls and yips as they ran though the maze. Shepard had been relieved of all of his weapons before he had entered so that he wouldn't damage the doors.

He fumbled through the five layers of the door he was stuck at. His mind was a blur as the separate screens with blinking activation points flickered harmoniously. The lock clicked loudly out and the door was open. He had just walked through the doorway when a large Varren slid around the corner. Its large bulbous eyes stared at him as its mouth dripped with sticky saliva. Its lips curled as a low growl echoed out of its mouth.

Shepard never broke eye contact as he slowly approached the door switch. He lifted his hand slowly towards the button. The Varren watched Shepard's hand move up and out behind the wall. It growled louder as it took a few steps toward Shepard. In response, Shepard quickly pressed the button. His sudden movements brought the killing speed of the Varren forwards. The door slid shut just as the Varren made it to the door. Shepard listened to the dull thud and scratching noises as the Varren attacked the other side of the door.

He wiped the sweat from his brow and laid on a patch of soft moss that was growing on the side of the labyrinth wall. It was surprisingly comfortable. He glanced at both doors to make sure that they were both locked. Happily they were as he closed his eyes and instantly fell into a deep sleep. An image of Tali was first to appear in his mind followed closely by her voice calling to him. He followed the voice through the darkness and into a calm and soothing sleep.

* * *

Krog stood over the moist corpse of a thresher maw. The blood dripped from his fist where he had punch the beast in the eye. He breathed out and smiled menacingly at the corpse laying in front of him.

"This is no challenge…" Krog said to himself as he felt the scratch along the side of his face.

His new cybernetic eye had improved Krog's hunting ability, and it excited him greatly. He flipped open his Omni-tool and brought up a picture of Shepard and Tali. He smiled at the picture and chuckled to himself.

"Married her I see…" Krog said to himself. "Hopefully our next fight you will be more prepared."

Krog pointed his shotgun behind him and shot the side of the thresher maw's face. A piece blew off as the creature lurched one last time. He turned and walked over to the mystified colonists who stood wide-eyed and mouths agape at the feat that Krog had accomplished. He sneered at the colonists leader and rested the gun on his shoulder. He held out his Omni-tool as the leader fumbled through his to process the transaction. Krog smiled at the large balance that he had accumulated, but that never gave him any satisfaction. He gave the village leader a good-bye head butt that knocked him out and took his leave. These humans were making him sick.

He fired his ship up and looked at the galactic map. A small red dot flickered at the Migrant Fleet. He laughed and threw the ship into auto start-up. He folded his arms and looked up as he remembered Shepard's feisty quarian wife.

"She has some claws Shepard… I wish you the best of luck on your marriage…" Krog said to himself with a smile.

He set the ship on a course to Illium. He had a client, an asari client, who was paying well. He smiled as he looked at the last name of his client. He repeated it slowly to get a ring for it.

"T'Soni…" He fell back in a more relaxed state. He had heard that name before, but he couldn't put his finger on it. He shrugged and looked back at the progress of the ship. "Such a beautiful name…" Krog laughed as he punched the ignition switch.

* * *

Miranda and Garrus walked around the ships of the Migrant Fleet. They weren't much to look at, but the quarian symbols scattered around the walls and windows had such an artistic feel to them though Garrus and Miranda cared little for that. They walked to the ship's lunch room where a large conglomeration of quarian's sat socializing loudly. The smell in the room was thick and delicious smelling, something that Garrus and Miranda never would have expected on a quarian ship.

The seats were simple mess hall chairs and luxury did not exist. A young quarian waitress walked over to the table and pulled a pad from her pocket. She looked at Garrus and smiled underneath of her mask. She looked over at Miranda and noticed the Cerberus emblem on the side. She glared at that emblem before turning her attention back to Garrus.

"What would you like to have?" The waitress asked Garrus.

"I'll have the Turian special…" Garrus said as he folded his hands.

"That's very original sir…" The waitress said sarcastically. "And what… do you want?"

"Do you have anything that humans can eat?" Miranda asked.

"We have fish…" the waitress said.

"Then I'll have a fish," Miranda said with a smile.

"Cooked or raw?" the waitress asked.

"Cooked… with seasoning if you can," Miranda said with a smile.

Garrus had followed the waitress's gaze at Miranda's Cerberus emblem on her collar. He looked over at the waitress and tapped her on the shoulder. She turned and regarded him for a second. Garrus motioned with his fingers that he had to tell her something private. She leaned in and Garrus whispered in her auditory receiver. The waitress gave her apologies and rushed to the kitchen.

"What did you say to her?" Miranda asked.

"Well, you know… Hey is that Tali?" Garrus asked looking over at a hunched over quarian who had just finished three turian ales. It had to have been Tali because her mask was sitting right next to her.

Garrus and Miranda looked at each other slightly confused. Miranda took in the three empty glasses that were sitting by Tali.

"Do you think she's drunk?" Miranda asked.

"She has to be…" Garrus said staring at Tali with cautious eyes.

"Should we talk to her?" Miranda asked.

"I don't know… She might be angry…." Garrus said.

"So?" Miranda said looking at the slim quarian again.

"She has a shotgun… and she is drunk… If she is upset, well… we may never get our food or have stomachs to put the food." Garrus said.

"I see your point." Miranda said. "But I still think we should talk to her. At least after we get our food."

"After we eat our food… The last meal before the execution?" Garrus asked.

"How bad could it be?" Miranda asked.


	30. Chapter 30: Problems Develop

Shepard awoke inside of the maze. He sat up only to feel his back protest against his movements. He stretched his arms up and yawned. Small cracks in the edge of the maze brought in much needed sunlight. He glared at the burning light with mixed feelings. It may be a new day, but this maze was still tearing him down. He wondered if Tali had to go through such challenging tasks.

He stood up and walked over to the next door and pressed his ear against it hopeful to hear something, or at least something that wasn't a Varren, on the other side. Nothing. He sighed and opened his Omni-tool and began to hack the door. His fingers ached with the panic that had plagued him the night before. The final locks were bypassed and the deadbolts snapped into the door. The door slid open slightly revealing a large pack of sleeping Varren.

Shepard's heart stopped as his body froze up. Happily none of them awoke from their slumber. The other door was at least fifty feet down the hall. He took a few steps forwards. A rush of air behind him confirmed that their was no turning back. He inched his way through the thick pack of Varren. There had to be more than fifteen of them sleeping on that floor. Shepard breathed out as he made each step. Then sadly he caught sight of a light beam.

The star for this planet was rising on the planet's surface and the beam was making its way down the wall towards the eyes of a sleeping Varren. Shepard quickened his pace, but still maintained an absolutely silent walk. He traveled at least ten more feet before he turned to see the light was halfway down. He broke out into a silent jog and was surprised how quiet he ran. He made it to the door and smiled to himself. The smile was short lived, however.

The light struck the Varren's closed eyes. It immediately jolted upright and looked around with sleepy eyes. The noise of that Varren awaking awoke the rest of the Varren who each jumped up defensively. The confusion gave Shepard enough time to begin the hack. There was twelve levels to this bypass and Shepard cursed under his breath. His fingers began their frantic fiddling again. Two of the Varren had got into a fight with the other and Shepard thanked his luck. The eleventh level of the bypass flew past him.

He turned back to the Varren and watched as they had come to discover his presence. He turned back to his Omni-tool and punched the last sequence into the door. It opened quickly and Shepard ran through it. He didn't have time to see if it closed. The door had opened up to a large branching corridor. He quickly turned the first corner and looked over his shoulder to catch sight of a Varren miss his shoulder by mere inches. He heard its head violently strike the wall which caused him to laugh briefly.

He quickened his pace when he heard that that wasn't the only Varren that had made it past the door. He turned his head back to catch sight of a at least two Varren running down the corridor after him. He took a large breath in as he began to sprint as hard as he could. He rounded another corner which opened to a large courtroom. He laughed as he saw a large set of doors which had to be the end.

He ran over to one of the pillars and ran around it. The Varren predictably followed him which Shepard used to his advantage. He grabbed the second Varren as it followed the first and ripped it to the ground. The Varren yelped for the other to help, but the tightness of the column and the wall forced the other to move on. Shepard punched wildly at the Varren's eyes knocking the poor creature out.

Shepard turned around just in time to get an armful of Varren. It knocked him against the wall, but did not manage to knock Shepard down. Shepard wrapped his arms around the Varren and threw it into the tight crevice of the pillar and wall. He jammed it into place and watched as it squirmed in its tight spot. Shepard patted his hands together and ran for the door with a smile. He quickly had the door open and saw that it led to an escape pod. He halfway walked into the room before he heard the sad yelping of the Varren he had jammed into the wall.

A wave of sadness ran over Shepard. He grabbed a rock and put it in the way of the door. He ran back to the trapped Varren and shook his head at what he was going to do. He took off his shirt and wrapped it around the back of the thrashing Varren. It managed to claw at him a few times, but Shepard still pulled hard on it. It jarred the Varren loose who instantly ran over to its fallen comrade. It licked its face before it looked angrily at Shepard, who wasn't standing there anymore. It looked past the pillar to see a dark figure slide through the edge of the door before it closed.

* * *

"Tali…" Garrus asked leaning in close to the passed out quarian.

Her arm shot out and grabbed her mask. She clipped it back onto her helmet and turned to Garrus. Her head appeared to be only loosely connected to her body as it bobbed around. She looked at the turian with eyes that never could keep the same emotions. She lifted a weak hand up to Garrus and pointed at him.

"Why ghello Arrus…" Tali said.

Garrus turned to Miranda. "She's drunk…" He told her.

"Drungk? Igh'm not drunkg! I'm angry! C'han chew see that?" Tali roared in a drunken haze.

"Why are you angry then?" Garrus asked, almost laughing at Tali's drunken spectacle.

"Schepard doeshn't neehd to do those tasks Arrus…Quarian Bureaucracy… Bah!" Tali said putting her head back onto the table.

"You don't sound like yourself Tali." Garrus said putting his hand on the pitiful quarian.

"Wghy would that matter?" Tali asked.

"Do you think Shepard would want to see you like this?" Garrus asked.

Tali rested her head on the table a few more seconds before she wobbly stood up. "Noh… I don't thingk he wouhld." Tali said.

She made her way to the door and just barely managed to catch herself on the side of the door. Many of the patrons to the mess hall all watched her stumble to the door. She turned and threw her hand out at them. She giggled then slid through the door. Garrus and Miranda was now greeted with the stares. They walked back to their table and looked at the food that had been delivered. They sat down and looked at their food before they looked at each other again. Both began to hysterically laugh.

"I never thought that I would see the day that I would see a drunk quarian!" Garrus said.

"Especially Tali!" Miranda said.

"Especially Tali!" Garrus repeated.

They both stopped mid laugh and looked back at Tali's predicament. "I wonder what they are all doing to Shepard…" Miranda asked.

"It must be bad if Tali is drinking…" Garrus answered.

"True…" Miranda said taking a small sip of her water.

* * *

Daro greeted Shepard back from the maze with surprise. She looked at the rips and blood that was soaking through Shepard's shirt. She opened the next door and watched in silence as Shepard walked into the next room with complete confidence. He had already completed more of the tasks than any other participant and in record time.

Shepard walked into the next room to find Han'Gerral who also looked at Shepard with surprised eyes.

"Shepard… It's good to see that you have made it this far…" Han said in disbelief.

"That last one was a little rough, but it wasn't so bad…" Shepard said with a smile, but the cut on his arm throbbed in protest. "What is my next challenge?"

"A history lesson…" Han said.

"That's it?" Shepard asked.

"Yes…" Han said happily.

"So is this a break for me then?" Shepard asked.

Han stepped forwards and got close to Shepard.

"I'm actually supposed to quiz you over quarian history, but I see that you have been through a lot, more than I would want to go through so I'm just going to give you a history lesson." Han said.

"Keelah Se'lai!" Shepard said happily. He pulled up a chair and sat down to rest his weary legs.

Han began to talk and Shepard actually found himself listening to every word of it. He began to feel intrigued and fascinated with the origins of the quarians though he already had heard enough from his talks with Tali. Han became excited and treated the history lesson like an intense story. Eventually both started laughing and finishing each other's sentences. Almost three hours later, Han ended his story and Shepard followed Han to the next room.

"So are you going to make this one easy on me too, Han?" Shepard asked hopefully.

"I can't do that… Not this one." Han said with a smile that was hidden under his mask.

A large ship engine was sitting in disarray in the center of the room.

"It's simple Shepard… repair the engine to open the door and you can move onto the next task." Han explained.

Shepard looked at the engine and scratched his head. His knowledge of engines was basic and he only hoped that he could guess what was wrong and get lucky. Han left the room, leaving Shepard to work. Shepard pulled bookmarked a few repair books, but he didn't look at them. He began a basic repair routine of the engine first before trying anything too extreme.

* * *

Krog walked past the protesting secretary through the door to the balcony seating. Behind the desk sat a prominent Asari who merely stared at the intimidating Krogan as he walked towards her without fear. Not many people anymore were brave enough to show such bravery towards her, but she knew about Krog. He reminded her so much of Shepard and had sadly fallen in love with the large Krogan. His methods matched her own so much that she felt a strong attraction towards him.

"Krog, is it?" Liara asked.

"Your information would be correct my beautiful T'Soni," Krog said with a smile, for once he had not lied.

Liara's mental blocks faltered briefly at the compliment. She felt her cheeks blush only slightly, but she shrugged it off quickly.

"I require your services…" Liara said turning away from the Krogan which Krog had never had done to him before.

"For…" Krog asked.

"I want you to find someone…" Liara said.

"Who?" Krog asked with Liara completely unaware that he was quite a bit closer.

"A daring commander…" Liara said.

"What's his name?" Krog asked who was now standing at her desk.

"He is not going to be easy…" Liara said.

"Shepard…" Krog whispered into her ear. Liara's heart jumped a few beats as she felt the hot breath on her neck. She could almost feel him against her, and it drove her crazy.

She turned and looked into the Krogan's eyes. Her heart began to miss beats as she looked into those powerful eyes. She wanted him to be hers, but she needed to know…

"So can you help me?" Liara asked.

"I already know where he is… I almost killed him, but…" Krog rubbed his fingers on the large gash on his face.

"He's better than you thought…" Liara said.

"A small underestimation…" Krog said removing his gaze from her. "And he had a woman with him."

"A woman?" Liara asked.

"A quarian warrior…" Krog said, rubbing the cut on his face again.

"Tali'Zorah…" Liara said to herself.

"His bride to be…" Krog said.

"What?!" Liara said with her mouth agape.

"He is marrying that woman… They are quite a pair…" Krog said with a smile.

"But they are already married… Why are they getting married again?" Liara asked herself. "Why?"

Liara looked angrily out from her balcony. She felt the strong Krogan's hands wrap around her shoulders. She readied her biotics, but lowered them upon hearing Krog's words burn in her ear.

"Sort of like us…" Krog said as he released her.

Liara turned, but no one was standing there. She didn't know how that Krogan did it, but he always seemed to disappear into the wind.


	31. Chapter 31: Questions Arise

The large engine with wires running at random and several burn-throughs loomed in front of Shepard. From his basic maintenance routines, he had only found a few loose wires and a dent in the main mass effect drive core. The element zero fuel injector was also malfunctioning, but Shepard had no idea if it was faulty at the injector or the intake valve, or if something was wrong with the fuel.

Shepard scratched his head as he pulled out his Omni-tool and scanned the interior of the tube. Nothing seemed out of place and the injector appeared to be in perfect working order. He scanned slowly over the tube until he ran over the intake valve. He found that it was jammed. He snapped his fingers and smiled at his luck. He jiggled the tube and unscrewed the side bolts. Finally the valve loosened and element zero was being fed to the still inactive engine.

Shepard scratched his head again. He walked around the engine several times while he scratched his chin in deep thought. He snapped his fingers again when he found that the computer data banks were shorted and the port flux converter had a hole. He easily replaced the data banks with the spares that were laying in the room, but he had to make another from the few parts of the ones that were there. The hole in the flux converter was a bit more of a challenge. He first tried to inject an adhesive into the hole, but the ionic energy that soon filled the converter melted it clean off.

Shepard picked up the polyclastic resin screens of the databanks that he had pulled. He found that they were also incredibly flexible. He applied the resin to the edges of the screens and fashioned a three screen thick polyclastic resin bandage. He quickly applied it to the converter and listened as it hummed to life. He walked over to the ignition and pressed it. It sputtered angrily, but it quickly died.

"What would Tali do?" Shepard asked himself as he looked at the hopeless engine. He looked over at the engine and shook his head. "It wouldn't hurt…"

Shepard walked to the side of the engine where a panel that was identical to the one that was on the destroyed ship on Pragia. He narrowed his eyes looking deep into the panels soul. He felt the anger of a million frustrated quarian engineers. The power surged through him and made its way to Shepard's leg. His leg shot forward faster than turian on skates. His foot collided with the panel at a force equivalent to one of Grunt's belches. The panel dented as Shepard felt the satisfying crash of the panel. He smiled even more as he heard the engine hum to life and the door open at the end of the hall.

Shepard laughed as he wearily walked forwards towards the door. He fell to the ground at his first step as the pain in his foot echoed throughout his body. He looked down at his foot and saw that the hard carbon-fiber plating was cracked. He laughed again as he felt the pain send another pulse through his body. He made it through the next door on his belly. Shala took it quite well.

* * *

Krog had no intention of going to the Migrant Fleet to get Shepard. Instead he went to the club in Omega. He enjoyed afterlife as much as he liked killing. He found the poisoned drinks to get him intoxicated that much faster, and the girls to get that much prettier. He sat down at the bar and glared at the Batarian barkeeper. Krog held up two fingers and turned back to the party. He wasn't going to screw around with his vacation.

The barkeep returned with two cups and slammed them loudly beside Krog who merely cocked his head over to them.

"Do you think I'm stupid Batarian?" Krog asked turning to the barkeep.

"I don't know what you mean sir…" The Batarian barkeep said innocently.

"I can smell the explosive Vorcha primer in glass A over here, and the faint aroma of the detonating enzyme over here in glass B." Krog said with a smile.

The Batarian gulped loudly. He had never seen a Krogan who could identify his poison. Krog smiled at the unsettled Batarian and took the first glass. He looked at it playfully before he gulped it down. The Batarian stared at Krog stiffly. Krog lifted the other drink and held it out to the barkeep.

"Cheers!" Krog said as he chugged the contents of the other cup.

He coughed wildly as thick black smoke began to billow from his mouth. In between coughs the Batarian could hear Krog laughing which only made him back up more. The smoke cleared and the teary eyed Krog slammed his fists on the table.

"That was some kick, haha." Krog said happily. "You should try it!"

An armored Turian approached Krog who Krog noticed with almost a sixth sense.

"I'll be right up…" Krog said as the turian opened his mouth.

Krog walked up the stairs to the heavily guarded overlook of Aria's den. He laughed at the pitiful guards and walked right up to her.

"Krog… I thought I told you never to show your face in my club again…" Aria said angrily.

"I could not resist, Aria. Your barkeeps are simply amazing at mixing drinks!" Krog said happily.

"That's because I told them to do that…" Aria said with a slight twitch of her eye.

"Aww… You shouldn't have… You're too sweet Aria. You need to toughen up so no one gets any ideas if you know what I mean." Krog said with a wink.

"One of these days Krog I will…" Aria started.

"What?! Kill me?! Haha! You flatter yourself. I have only come close to dying once and that was by the hands of your best friend Commander Shepard." Krog said happily.

"A pity he didn't finish the job…" Aria said looking back down on her club.

"… then again I almost killed him…" Krog said with a smile.

"I don't know why you are smiling Krog. Wouldn't that make Shepard your only survivor?" Aria said glaring into Krog's wild eyes.

"I'm not finished yet…" Krog said angrily.

"That eye looks new… Did Shepard take that from you…" Aria teased.

"You better watch your tongue Asari!" Krog yelled.

"Or you will do what?" She demanded.

Krog looked at the millions of guards and snipers in the room. He smiled and looked back at Aria with even crazier eyes.

"Don't push it!" Krog whispered to her.

He turned and left with a smile spread across his face. He knew that he had truly made the security of Aria falter for that second. He knew she feared him. Most people did fear him, but that Asari T'Soni… She was something else. He thought that she was probably as crazy as him. If he had to choose to have a mate, he would most likely pick her.

* * *

Tali stumbled out of the mess hall. The hallway slowly spun around as her stomach lurched violently with sick spasms. The light began to burn her eyes, and the millions of confused stares only made her anger grow. _What are they looking at? Don't they know how angry I am? Why does no one understand me? Why am I even here? I don't feel so good…_ Tali grabbed her stomach as it shifted loudly. She could see the door to her room and only wished that se was behind those doors.

She pushed herself off of the railing, but she only managed to fall over to the railing on the other side. She felt all sense of coordination leave her body at that moment. She thought about crawling, but the number of people in the hallway made that idea pass quickly. She closed her eyes and took a few breaths. She managed to walk another five feet before steadying herself again. She smiled at her success and even giggled at it though she didn't know why.

A few more confused looks drove Tali to make the final steps to her room. She fell through the door which happily closed before anyone saw her laying on the floor with her butt in the air. She laughed at herself, but her body didn't correct the uncomfortable position. She eventually rolled onto her side and looked at her bed. She doubted that she had the ability to stand up and get in so she simply fell asleep on the floor where she felt the most comfortable.

* * *

Garrus and Miranda's plates were clean by the time the young waitress returned. She looked at the spotless plates and back at the two aliens who were licking their lips and talking loudly. She shook her head as she picked them up and turned to return to the kitchen. Miranda pointed at the quarian as she walked away. Garrus turned to her and laughed. The quarian knew what they were doing. She felt the anger twitch in her left eye, but she managed to walk into the kitchen before she attacked them.

"So what do you think about that quarian?" Miranda asked pointing at their waitress.

Garrus laughed heartily. "I don't know how she would react if she was drunk! Tali has been the first quarian to have become intoxicated like that, and she was angry when she did it… You know what that does…" Garrus said taking a large sip of his drink.

"I think it would be funny to see a party of quarians where they were all drunk and stumbling around!" Miranda said, laughing with tears welling up in her eyes.

"I would enjoy seeing it too, but the casualties might be a bit too high for my liking…" Garrus said.

"They do have that problem…" Miranda said, calmly observing the peaceful scene in front of her.

"So did you see her face?" Garrus asked.

"Hmm?" Miranda asked.

"Her face, did you see it?" Garrus asked again.

"Who, Tali's? No she clipped her mask on too fast. Did you?" Miranda asked staring hopefully at Garrus.

"No… I didn't." Garrus said sadly.

Miranda caught his tone and almost laughed a the similarities. "You want to see what she looks like don't you?" Miranda asked with a smile.

If turians could blush, Garrus's face would have been as red as a Red Giant.

"Who doesn't want to see what she looks like?" Garrus asked taking an uneasy sip of his drink.

"That's true…" Miranda said as a small splash of pink crossed her cheeks.

"You want to see her too?" Garrus exclaimed when he saw the subtle blush.

"What!? I didn't say anything!" Miranda yelled defensively.

"You blushed!" Garrus said pointing at her face.

"So what if I want to see what she looks like?" Miranda asked.

"What if we asked her?" Garrus asked with hope behind his eyes.

Miranda stared at him with a look of mixed shock and desire.

"Why don't you ask her?" Miranda answered.

"Me? I'm like Shepard's best friend! I couldn't do that!" Garrus yelled.

"Exactly! She will understand you!" Miranda said.

"Why don't you ask her? Your both female!" Garrus interjected.

"That would just be strange…" Miranda said with a shiver.

"Why would it be strange?" Garrus asked.

"A girl asked to see what another girl looks like? Do you see the problem?" Miranda asked with lifted hands.

"And it would be fine for me!?" Garrus exclaimed.

"Maybe we should talk to Shepard and Tali, both, when they are done with this…" Miranda concluded.

"I guess…" Garrus said quietly.

* * *

Shala was standing in what appeared to be a textile factory. A million and one banners of fabric were strewn about the room. Shepard simply laid on the floor looking up at the rainbow coalition of colors and designs. Each of them, as beautiful as they were, shared a common flaw in Shepard's eyes; they just didn't seem quarian. Shala began to describe the challenge.

"Shepard, you have made it to the sixth challenge…" Shala began slowly looking down at the sprawled Shepard. "I see that you got here on your stomach… impressive."

"Keelah Se'lai to you too Shala…" Shepard said as his foot said hello again. He took a few breaths before he turned to look her in the face.

"Keelah Se'lai Shepard." Shala said, bowing her head gracefully. "Your challenge is to pick out the banner of fabric in this room that was created by an authentic quarian seamstress." Shala began.

"That one?" Shepard asked pointing into the jungle of interlaced banners.

Shala looked up to find Shepard pointing at the exact one. She stared for some time at the fabric. _How did he… He… There's no way that he…_ Even Shala's thoughts were shocked. She walked over and grabbed a staff with a hook at the end and pulled the fabric down. She folded it ceremoniously and handed it to Shepard.

"I don't know how you did it so fast Shepard, but here is your ceremonial fabric to make your robes from." Shala said with a slight break in her words as she stumbled over the impossible quick eyes of Shepard.

Shepard started walking to the door, but upon hearing Shala speak he stopped respectfully.

"If I might ask, Commander Shepard, but how did you do that," She motioned at the folded fabric laying in Shepard's arms. "That fast?" Shala asked.

"Simple… The colors on this fabric had a very unique pattern of swirls on it, something that I have found to be a part of your robes when I crawled in here, and of the robes that Tali wears. I gave a quick sweep through the other fabrics and saw no such pattern." Shepard said smiling.

Shala looked at the fabric and back up at the large array of fabrics. She saw no difference in the swirl patterns. She looked back at the smile that Shepard was now sporting. She felt the question in her rise because she knew that it had to be right.

"You guessed didn't you?" Shala asked.

"You bet I did! And I have to say I'm glad I picked this one!" Shepard almost fell over laughing. Shala too shared a giggle at the spectacle of Shepard stumbling around on an almost broken foot with his mouth wide open and tears running down his cheeks. Shepard walked through the door which closed quickly behind him. Shala put her hand on her helmet and rubbed it curiously.

"You better know what your getting yourself into Tali'Zorah…" She said distantly.


	32. Chapter 32: Tali Drunk

Shepard walked into the dark next room with still a smile spread over his face. The door behind him hissed closed and sealed which made Shepard stop. The only light was where he was standing. The rest of the room sat in complete silence and complete darkness in front of him. The intercom crackled to life.

"Commander Shepard! It's good to see you again!" Zaal'Koris said in his exuberant voice.

"Keelah Se'lai…Zaal… What is this challenge? Backgammon? Skyllian Five?" Shepard asked.

"No more games Shepard… You are going to do what you do best… Fight!" Zaal yelled.

Before Shepard could even respond, the front of the room erupted with life. A large array of orange lights flickered on and rose. The large assortment of LOKI and YMIR Mechs looked quite intimidating. The main lights to the room turned on revealing the large mechanized army that had been placed in one room. Shepard looked between ever single mech. He gauged their strengths and tried to predict which of the mechs would strike first. He lifted his hand and flicked his Omni-tool on. By the time the next breath escaped his mouth, all of the mechs had lifted their arms and rained a wall of lead at Shepard.

Shepard quickly ducked behind a nearby cargo container and quickly hacked a nearby LOKI. He laughed as the final sub-routines clicked into place and the LOKI turned to his side. The happiness was short lived as the LOKI was all but disintegrated by the wall of lead that was focused towards it. Shepard cursed to himself as he tried to lock on another mech, one that would last a bit longer.

He easily hacked the next LOKI mech that was standing in the back. It managed to squeeze a few rounds into one of the YMIR mechs. It turned around and cut the poor mech in two with its chain gun. Shepard took the opportunity to lock the YMIR mech's code into his Omni-tool as he ducked for cover again. He looked at the forty-one pages of hack material in front of him. He cursed as he quickly ran his fingers through the processes.

He heard one of the gun shots fire dangerously close. He looked over the side of the cargo box to see the legs of a LOKI mech. He quickly stood up and held the mech in front of him as the other mechs unloaded into it. He fell behind the cargo box and ripped one of the LOKI mech's arms off. The Omni-tool was instantly back open and the pages flew past him with blinding speed. He thanked the quarians for making him go through that labyrinth of bypasses. His fingers and mind were quicker on the trigger than he had ever known a human could react. He was down to only ten pages left when the dull thud of a YMIR mech hit only five feet from him.

His heart quickened as he punched through the last couple of pages. He heard the heat sinks to the mech release which told him he had maybe three seconds to do something. He lifted the arm and fired it into the mech's head, but the bullets bounced off of the armor and Shepard cursed his chances. He pulled the body of the LOKI mech and triggered its tiny nuclear core to overload. He threw the body out in front of the YMIR mech who looked at it quizzically.

The violent explosion shifted the box slightly to the right. He looked over to see part of the mech hanging loosely from its body, but it still marched towards him. He quickly passed through the final pages of the mech and hacked the still fresh YMIR mech who had just stepped in front of Shepard's cargo box haven. It turned and swept its chain gun hand across the wave of LOKI mechs taking at least five of them in the first sweep. The second YMIR mech caught sight of the hacked mech and managed to unload a missile into its side. The chain gun still fired as the mech fell over, running the length of the other mech.

The double explosions were music to Shepard's ears as he knew that two out of the three YMIRs were down. The other was still in disarray beside Shepard's cover. Shepard looked around the corner to see that two LOKI mechs remained. He quickly hacked one and hoped that it would survive. Both of the mechs turned to each other and killed each other. Shepard cursed again.

The room was eerily silent except for the scratching and creaking noise of the semi-dismantled mech clawing its way to him. From what Shepard could see, the mech still had full use of its weapon's systems. He poked his head out to confirm this in which a spread of bullets answered. The targeting of the mech didn't appear to be damaged either.

* * *

Tali woke up on the floor. She moaned angrily as her neck popped and her back didn't want to move. She had a headache beyond anything she had ever known. The small window in her room gave an excellent view of the binary star system. A sight that Tali despised as the stars burned a hole through Tali's head.

"Damn Turian alcohol!" Tali said clutching her head as her own words racked her brain.

She fell onto the bed and threw the covers over her head. She opened her Omni-tool so she could research what was wrong with her. She wasn't showing any signs of a bacterial presence and a virus scan coined out all viruses, yet her head burned with the intensity of the binary stars outside of her window. Eventually she found a human word for it.

"A hangover?" Tali asked herself as she squinted at the blinding Omni-tool. "Hangover- the disagreeable physical aftereffects of drunkenness, such as a headache or stomach disorder, usually felt several hours after cessation of drinking."

The previous day returned to her. She remembered how she had acted and how she didn't care how she was acting. She would have laughed, but even the thought of the loud echoing laugh made her ear drums cringe. She knew that Shepard had been in the trials for almost two days now.

"I wonder if he's still alive?" Tali teased herself.

"I bet he's already destroyed half the fleet by now…" Tali said laughing to herself.

A loud knock came at her door. Tali buried her head into her pillow and told them to come in. Garrus walked in holding a cup of steaming tea.

"What are you doing here Garrus?" Tali asked angrily as the bright outside light flooded her room.

"I thought I'd bring a cure for the hangover your feeling…" Garrus said holding the cup in front of her.

Tali looked at the cup then at her hand. The antibiotic-immuno-boost was empty.

"I can't drink that Garrus… Sorry…" Tali said sadly as her headache persisted.

"Why? You drank a ton without your mask last night." Garrus said happily.

Garrus's cheery tone drove a spike into Tali's head.

"Shhhhh… not so loud…" Tali whispered.

"Sorry…" Garrus whispered.

"What do you mean I drank a ton?" Tali asked.

"Well… before you stumbled out of the mess hall, you drank almost five Turian ales…" Garrus said.

"Only five?" Tali asked.

"Five? Five is enough to make an ordinary Krogan tipsy. The effects on a slim quarian like you? You could have died." Garrus said with a chuckle at the end.

"Oh… I'm just having a hard time…" Tali said as she pulled out a spare pack for her hand.

She was going to save it till Shepard finished the bonding ritual, but she needed it now. She injected herself and grabbed the cup from Garrus's hands. She turned from him and unclipped her mask. Garrus watched her as she placed the mask to the side and bring the cup up to her mouth. Garrus caught sight of a few bluish hairs, but Tali quickly brushed them from behind the hood. He wanted to just walk in and see her face, but an overwhelming sense of personal respect prevented him from doing so, but it still drove him to talk.

"Tali… I wanted to ask you something…" Garrus said uneasily.

"What is it Garrus?" Tali asked happily turning ever slightly in his direction, but not enough to expose her face.

"I wanted to ask you if-" Garrus started.

"Garrus! This tea is amazing! My headache is already gone!" Tali exclaimed without turning around. She placed the cup down and clipped the mask back on to turn to Garrus. "So what were you saying?"

"Never mind…" Garrus said sadly.

Tali stared at him knowingly. She knew what he wanted to ask her.

"Do you really want to see my face that bad Garrus?" Tali asked happily.

Garrus tilted back on his heels at how she picked out his thoughts. "Well ya… I mean we have been friends since we both met Shepard and all… so… I think I deserve the right… I think… I mean its all up to you…." Garrus stammered.

"Of course I'll show you Garrus… geez…" Tali said as she lifted her hands back up to her mask. "Just close the door…"

Garrus didn't feel right being in the room with the soon to be wed woman while she was showing him her face. It felt like he was taking part in some love affair or something. Like at the moment she took it off Shepard would burst through the door and catch them. Garrus put his hand up to his facial scar and imagined how Shepard would torture him, yet his curiosity drove him to stay and watch.

Tali took the mask off, keeping it in her hand as she lowered it. The lighting in the room played brilliant effects on Tali's smooth face. Garrus felt his eyes melt at how she looked. He never would have ever imagined her to look like this. The small air flow from a nearby vent blew the strands of the bluish hair in her face. The soft door light glimmered off of Tali's brilliant glowing eyes which only intensified the beauty. The small cybernetic censors that ran up from her suit were positioned at key points on her face. The smile on her face was of pure innocence and happiness though there was a slight tiredness from it which could have come from the hangover.

Garrus continued to look at the soft delicate features of the semi-purplish tint of her skin which seemed to be slightly tanned. She appeared to look almost like a human, except for those mysterious eyes. Upon closer inspection Garrus realized that the glow was coming from a sophisticated network of cybernetic implants that had been placed in probably at birth. She seemed so happy and innocent and beyond anything that Garrus had ever seen. The next thing he remembered was standing outside of her room and the door closing.

* * *

"EDI… How long is this Quarian-Bonding Ritual thing…" Joker asked while a spun his chair in circles with boredom.

"The Ritual does not have a time limit and is not used that often among the quarian people. It is mainly used if there is an interspecies bonding that would hinder the quarian in question unusable in the reproduction of the Fleet. Some speculate that it is a deterrent created by the quarian people to discourage such interspecies bonding." EDI explained.

"So how many successful bonding rituals have been completed?" Joker asked.

"None have been documented. This could be from insufficient data or that none have actually made it." EDI answered.

"Great…" Joker said sitting back in his chair as it continued to spin.

"You should stop spinning, Jeff. You will get sick." EDI said after Joker had done five revolutions.

"Nonsense EDI… I'm a trained professional! I don't get sick!" Joker said proudly.

"Very well Jeff…" EDI said with a strained, emotionless monotone.

Joker stopped the chair after the thirtieth revolution. He looked down the hall of the ship. His vision was blurred and the ship began to spin. He tried to get out of his chair to get to the bathroom, but he decided that he probably shouldn't just in case he fell and broke a rib. His stomach churned loudly and the sickness began to take him. He didn't want to hand victory to EDI so he tried to ignore it.

Sadly, he only lasted a mere two minutes before he found himself in the bathroom puking up his guts. Joker could hear that AI laughing now though he knew she couldn't laugh. He walked out of the bathroom and sat down. The two vertical lines that served as the mouth for EDI twitched ever so slightly.

"I KNOW! I KNOW! I GET IT!" Joker yelled.

The ship remained quiet.


	33. Chapter 33: Disappointment

The infernal scraping of the crippled mech scratched irritation into Shepard's mind. He knew it had to be only mere feet from his crate, but the position of his surroundings didn't allow him a chance to maneuver anywhere. He looked around to find something, anything that he could use to fight it, but his search only found him a chunk of the very cargo crate that he was hiding behind. _It could work…_ Shepard thought to himself looking at the brittle piece of crate sitting in his hands.

He positioned himself into a crouched position, and readied the large piece of debris in his hand. He instantaneously tossed the piece of debris away from him at the same time that he bolted from around the corner running directly into the kill zone of the YMIR. The YMIR had only momentarily glanced at the debris to scan it, but that small delay was enough for Shepard to jump on its back. It tossed and kicked as Shepard held on for his life. He grabbed the severed leg of the YMIR mech and broke it free from the small decrepit ball-joint.

Shepard felt himself swing the leg wildly against the head of the YMIR. It was soon flattened to a nice disc shape sending a few sparks as the last electric spark of life failed to connect the brain with the body. The machine lurched one last time before it became forever still. Shepard still held onto the back of the YMIR just to make sure that the mech didn't click back on. He nearly jumped out of his socks when he heard the door from across the room open.

Zaal and a small group of quarian guards walked into the room and looked at the carnage. From Zaal's point of view, he saw a massacre of robots with their executioner strangling the life from the final crippled robot. To say the least, Zaal was impressed beyond words. He felt himself walk slowly towards Shepard who wearily stood up from the destroyed YMIR mech. He didn't look to happy.

Zaal walked straight into a small pool of flammable coolant that had oozed from some of the nearby mechs. Shepard saw it immediately and quickly followed the pool to a pile of LOKI mechs. One of the thermal clips inside of the pile popped and fizzed sending hot sparks down onto the pool of liquid. Shepard immediately jumped forward and tackled Zaal off of the pool just as it erupted into searing blue flames that could melt the quarian's environmental suits. Zaal was completely unaware of why Shepard had just tackled him.

"What are you doing Shepard?" Zaal yelled angrily.

The guards took aim at Shepard though they didn't know why. Shepard stood up and moved out of the way of the large wall of pyroclastic death. Zaal was speechless again. He never thought that Shepard would save him from anything.

"Commander Shepard… I-I-I want to thank you. I thought you were just…" Zaal stammered staring at the bright flames that slowly subsided.

"Angry? No. I'm just really tired…" Shepard said.

"I think that action deserves a break, but sadly I can't give you it now… but I will buy you a drink when you finish this." Zaal said with respect that was unbeknownst to Shepard.

Zaal's words repeated in his head. 'When you finish this.' He found that now Zaal was believing in him to complete this task. The amount of support he was gaining through doing this task would undoubtedly help him in gaining the support of the quarian people.

* * *

Tali woke up in her bed and her head hurt. She looked around the room for that cup of 'hangover cure', but it was nowhere to be found.

"Garrus must have took it back." Tali said stretching her back. She stood up and walked over to the door of her room. Upon opening it, she found Garrus standing outside of the door with an identical cup of steaming tea.

"Garrus! I'm glad you got more for me! My head is killing me!" Tali said happily.

Garrus stared at her confused and pulled the cup away from her hands. He took a sip of the liquid instead.

"What do you mean more?" Garrus asked.

"What are you talking about? Last night you came to my room and gave me that miracle 'hangover cure' tea." Tali said reaching for the cup again.

Garrus pulled the cup away from her again. "I don't remember ever doing that, Tali." Garrus said with confusion.

Tali stared at him for some time trying to get her bearings. _He's just messing with me._ Tali walked back into the room to get proof of the events she remembered. She opened her pack to find the single antibiotic-immuno-boost vial still full. She nearly dropped it as her mind raced to piece together everything. She looked up at Garrus who stared at her with a concerned look.

"Then why are you here?" Tali asked pointing a finger at Garrus.

"I was coming to check on you… You were pretty trashed last night." Garrus said with a small chuckle.

"I know I drank like five turian ales and I stumbled back to my room." Tali said rubbing her head.

"Five? I would more say ten!" Garrus said with a large burst of laughter.

"But you told me five…" Tali said with confusion.

"When did I tell you five?" Garrus asked with concern back in his voice.

"Last night! Don't you remember!?" Tali yelled.

"I was never in your room last night Tali…" Garrus said taking a step back.

"But-but… You-I… I showed you my face and you were shocked. I saw you…" Tali said shaking her head down at the ground trying to get her memory back.

"It was probably the Turian Ale. It has different effects on different species. You were probably hallucinating." Garrus said giving her a reassuring pat on her shoulder.

"I don't know anymore…" Tali said burying her head in her hands.

"Just take some time off… Your stressed as it is. Just relax! I heard Shepard has punched through the seventh task and he is showing no signs of slowing. You should see the crowds that he is amassing. There are bets being placed on him!" Garrus said happily.

This brought Tali out of her slump. "He completed the seventh task?" was all she could muster to ask.

"Ya! And I heard he saved Zaal's life afterwards! Shepard never ceases to amaze." Garrus said shaking his head and folding his arms. "Well I'll let you wait off your hangover. You still seem a bit 'bright eyed'" Garrus said, laughing as he left her room.

Tali sat on the bed and stared at the door. _He has to be pulling your leg Tali you know that! He was here last night and you did show him your face. Wait… Why did you show him your face again? _Her memory began to blur. _How did I know what he was thinking?_ Tali flopped back on her bed and nearly punched herself in the face. How could she have been that stupid. She looked over at the cup that Garrus had left in her room. "Turian Ale… Keelah…"

She stood up and walked to the door of her room again. It all had felt so real, but the more she thought about it, the more it didn't make sense. How did she see herself? How could she see Garrus after he had left and closed the door. None of it was making sense. She decided she would rather prefer to see the large groups of people who had taken an interest in her husband-to-be. Maybe she would place a few bets of her own. She smiled as she left her room and walked out into the busy hallway.

* * *

-Three hours earlier-

Zaal escorted Shepard to the next challenge block. Shepard had to slip into his armor for this challenge though Shepard didn't mind the weight increase for the increase in security. Zaal opened the next room and pointed to the center of the room.

"Your next challenge is in there commander… Wait for further instructions." Zaal ordered, taking his leave.

Shepard walked into the room which was dimly lit. He, for some reason had to wear his helmet which made Shepard think that he was going to have to do outside repairs to the ship or some form of that task. The vents on the walls instantly opened releasing all of the air that was in Shepard's room into space. Shepard assumed that this was the airlock to get outside. He barely noticed the small hissing noise coming from the back of his suit.

"Your suit has a problem Shepard!" Zaal's voice echoed into his radio comm-link. "You need to fix it immediately before you can move on."

Shepard reached up to the back of his suit and found that the air tube to his helmet had ruptured. The memory of his death began to cause Shepard to panic. He instantly reached up with both of hands to completely wrap around the hole, but his large armored hands couldn't close it. His heart raced as the air became thinner and thinner in the helmet. His mind instantly clicked back onto gear. He let go of the tube and grabbed a spare tube in one of the side panels of the suit. He took a deep breath as he yanked the tube out of his helmet releasing all of his air. He quickly attached the one side to the air tank, but struggled with the other side.

His eyes began to well up with tears as his lungs began to burn, but Shepard held on. He struggled with the clamps to seal the tube into his helmet. He felt his body instinctually try to take another breath in, but there was nothing to breath. This brought a panic to him as he fell on his knees. The jot of hitting the ground snapped the tube into place sending a refreshing blast of air into his helmet. Shepard breathed deeply savoring every breath. The side of the ship opened revealing the outside of the ship. A void of darkness.

Shepard walked to the door and looked out alongside of the curved form of the ship.

"We need the radar discs calibrated manually on the outside of the ship. This is your task commander. If you can complete this task in less than two minutes than you will get a reprieve." Zaal said to him.

Shepard's tired bones pushed him forwards onto the side of the ship. He only activated his magnetized shoes only to position himself parallel to the outside of the ship. He catapulted himself up the ship. He wasn't going to miss an opportunity to take a break. He pushed his body to the limit as he continually push himself up the side of the ship towards the large array of dishes.

It had taken at least one minute to get to the discs and fifteen seconds to open the panel. Shepard's mind worked frantically as he calibrated the dishes from shear instincts. The final lock of the calibration process clicked into place. Shepard looked down at his timer. He almost cried at the time.

"2:03!" Shepard yelled to himself.

"Come back to the airlock Shepard. You are ready to move on." Zaal said happily.

Shepard's bones protested against his movements as he slowly clawed his way back to the airlock. He found that all of the Admirals were waiting for him inside of the airlock. He stared at them, confused and tired.

"Commander Shepard. You are ready to move onto the next challenge." Shala said.

"Keelah Se'lai… Shala." Shepard said taking a respectful bow that felt like needles being driven into his back.

"Keelah Se'lai Shepard." Shala said giving him an identical courtesy.

They motioned for Shepard to follow them. Shepard did. They opened the door and pointed for him to go in. He did. They talked amongst themselves. Shepard remained quiet. They arrived at a door that they all circled. They funneled Shepard to the door told him to go in. Shepard walked in and found what appeared to be an interrogation room.

"You may rest here for five hours while we get your next challenge ready." Shala said, walking away before Shepard could question her.

Shepard turned to Zaal who equally ignored him. He pleadingly looked to the other two, but they too ignored him. He looked down and unclamped his helmet. He slowly walked into the room and curled up in one of the corners. He felt his eyes drop, but from beyond that point the remembered nothing as he fell into one of the best sleeps he had in the long three days that he had been awake or restless inside of a ridiculous labyrinth infested with Varren. He dreamed of the Normandy. He dreamed of Rannoch, but more importantly he dreamed of Tali standing with him again, hand in hand.


	34. Chapter 34: The Gauntlet Ends

Tali walked through the large excited crowds on the Rayya. She had been away from these cells of excitement for so long that she couldn't keep up with them as she could before. Her movements through the crowds though had still maintained their skill. She weaved through the hyped crowd to the front of the room to find a quarian male holding on a small intercom speaker. An excited speaker's voice blasted from it updating the crowd on the accomplishments of Shepard's fight against the mechs. Only a few noticed Tali in the crowd. A few walked up to her and yelled over the crowd.

"You picked one amazing man to be your husband!" yelled her old friend Qwart'Fylgar vas Rayya.

"Thanks!" Tali said happily.

That small burst of information sparked a chain reaction in the crowd. Everyone turned to her and asked if she was the one that 'Thee Commander Shepard' was bonding with. She could only shake her head shyly though the smile under her mask shone brightly. Shepard was making quite a mark in the Flotilla.

"I don't think I've ever seen people this excited…" Tali said to herself as she regarded the masses of cheering quarians clapping and cheering her on.

The crowd instantly hushed, and the people parted revealing a all four Admirals standing in the doorway. One talked to one of the quarian bystanders who pointed directly at Tali. They nodded and walked over to her.

"Tali'Zorah vas Normandy… You are needed for the next challenge." Shala said happily.

"You underestimated Shepard didn't you?" Tali asked quietly as she hugged Shala.

"Not now… I'll tell you along the way." Shala said giving her a small pat on her arm.

They turned and walked out of the room and down the hall towards the shuttle bay. Tali would glance every few moments at the different Admirals. They all shared the same atmosphere as the room she had just left. An atmosphere that had been foreign for so many years. This brought a smile to Tali's face even more than the excitement of the previous room, and it even added a small spring to her step.

They boarded the shuttle on the side of the Rayya and slowly made their way to the Providence. Tali looked at Shala for the answer she promised. Shala laughed slightly before she started.

"Tali… It's about Shepard. He is more than we could have expected any human to be."

"So he is completing the challenges faster than you can make them?" Tali teased.

"Completing them? He has done more than completed the tasks Tali! He saved Zaal's life after he had just completed one of the most daunting challenges!" Shala said happily.

Tali looked over to Zaal who had held his head high the entire trip, but he lowered it upon feeling her gaze on him.

"Yes… It is true Tali… Shepard saved my life…" Zaal struggled to say.

"He even beat your best Tali…" Shala said.

"What!?" Tali asked, perplexed.

"Your dish calibration run… He finished it in a mere 1:54!" Daro'Xen said.

"1:54! Keelah… that's ten seconds faster than me!" Tali said in amazement.

"We uploaded your time into his Omni-tool so he thinks that he didn't complete the run…" Zaal said.

Tali narrowed her eyes at the quarian Admiral. The anger rose in her body causing her hand to slowly clench into a fist.

"Why would you do that?" Tali demanded.

"We had to see how he handles losing once." Zaal answered.

"Your playing with him!" Tali yelled.

"Tali…Tali…Tali…" Shala said soothingly. "What Zaal is trying to say is…" Shala paused and looked at all of the other Admirals. They all gave her a small nod of agreement. "Your Commander Shepard has passed every test…"

Tali felt her body's muscles go limp. She sat staring at Shala for some time before she managed to stammer out what was on her mind.

"B-but that's impossible… I mean… no one-and I mean No. One. Has ever completed all of those tasks." Tali said.

"And not as fast and efficient as Shepard has shown us." Shala said.

Tali felt her hands fall onto her lap as she stared at the Admirals.

"How did he take completing all of the tasks?" Tali asked staring at each one.

"We haven't told him…" Shala said.

"Why?" Tali asked.

"He still needs to do one last thing, and you are going to be a part of it…" Shala said.

"I'm not going to mess with Shepard's mind!" Tali protested.

"Once you hear what you need to do, you will accept what we need you to do…" Shala said happily.

* * *

_Everything was dark around Shepard. The weight and soreness of his body melted away as he felt himself lifted into space. The star system quickly came into view as Shepard felt himself fly into orbit around a beautiful planet, Rannoch. Shepard smiled as he saw a familiar form float towards him._

_Tali… He heard echo through the space. He knew that it was his voice but the sound had simply been produced from nothing. Or was it his mind that was saying this? She smiled as they came together, their hands laced together into an unbreakable bond. She wasn't wearing her mask and her hood had been pushed back. Her hair floated in the vacuum of space, yet none appeared to land in her face. Nothing blocked her loving innocent stare. She opened her mouth only slightly._

"_Shepard…" were the words that emerged from her unmoving lips._

"_I'm here…" Shepard thought which sent it into an audible rhythm through space._

"_Shepard…" came her voice again._

"_Tali, I'm right here!" Shepard projected._

_He watched as Rannoch's star was enveloped in a dark shadow. He looked past Tali and saw Harbinger approaching. Tali began to drift towards Harbinger or was it Shepard drifting from Tali? Shepard clawed for her to reach for him, but she gave him a small smile as she closed her eyes. The dark form of Harbinger burned the surface of Rannoch as it flew past. Shepard cried out._

"_Tali!"_

_He watched her form be consumed into the darkness. All hope was lost, yet the form continued to its real destination. Shepard felt the burning cold of Harbinger's presence._

"_If I must tear you apart Shepard, I will!"_

"_Shepard!" He heard Tali's voice._

"_Tali!"_

"_Shepard! Shepard! Wake up!" He heard her say._

_He felt his body be pushed through the darkness and back into the light._

* * *

Tali was standing above Shepard when he jumped awake. He stood staring at her with sweat glistening off of his brow. He felt his heart trying to escape the confines of his chest at the same time that his lungs were trying to expand beyond their capacity. He looked down at his Omni-tool to see that he had slept for five hours. He still felt groggy, but the sudden jolt kept him going. His mind broke free from the time. He looked back up to see Tali staring at him quizzically.

"Shepard?" Tali questioned.

"T…Tali!" Shepard almost jumped the hug onto her. She fell over laughing as they fell back. "I've missed you so much!" Shepard yelled.

"I have some news for you Shepard!" Tali said happily.

"Did I finish all of the tasks? No. I couldn't have. That was only eight." Shepard said to himself, but Tali heard him.

"You have one task left." Tali said.

"One?" Shepard asked in disbelief.

"Yeah…" Tali said diverting her eyes for only a second.

"What is it? And why are you hear to tell me it?" Shepard asked in disbelief.

"I am your next task Shepard… The final stage! We have to link our suit environments." She gave him a small wink.

_Right! We weren't supposed to have sex before this bonding ritual… Just act like you've never seen her before… Act nervous. No. That's not me! How should I act? Damn! I forgot how I acted when I hadn't seen her before. _Shepard frantically looked for something to do that wouldn't make it obvious, but he stopped and looked at the glass wall in the room.

"They're watching us aren't they?" Shepard asked.

Tali looked over at the wall. "No. No one is there. They gave us our privacy!" Tali said.

Shepard knew she was lying. She always diverted her eyes when she was lying and her voice took on a unique trill noise that only Shepard appeared to pick out because the four Admirals on the other side of the glass wall believed her. Shepard turned back to her and looked her deeply into her eyes.

"Tali… You know that I would never risk your health like this. I may be tired, and I would like nothing more than to be with you, but I know how I must approach this relationship for it to work. I want nothing more than your safety! And from what I learned from these tasks, I see that all of the quarian people are one big family so I will treat them all as family! All have my respect!" Shepard said with such feeling and fortitude that Tali fell in love with him all over again.

Shepard stood up and leaned against the wall as his leg finally gave way. Tali could now see the entirety of the damage that had been endured by her Commander and husband. She was afraid to approach the battered human who looked at her weakly, yet he still gave her a happy smile. The door to the room opened with the four Admirals entering. Tali hid her excitement better than she thought she could.

"Commander Shepard… You came here to fulfill the ten impossible tasks of the interspecies bonding ritual, and you are the first to succeed at such a feat. You have also set quite a few records and made quite a few fans." Shala said.

"Fans?" Shepard asked.

Shala opened the door more to reveal a large group of quarians who all began cheering Shepard's name. Shepard stood in a tired awe as he looked at the spectacle outside of the door. Tali ran forwards and hugged Shepard heavily. Shepard's weak body barely managed to hold her weight that she leaned on him, but he managed to maintain his balance.

"Thank you for saving my life Commander…" were Zaal's only words though they held more meaning than any other words he had ever given Shepard.

Shala walked forwards and gave Shepard a gentle hug. The fans outside began a loud cheer again screaming quarian cheers. Shepard laughed weakly at the spectacle. He rubbed his head as the tiredness drove his eyes into a sleepy blink. Tali returned to his side holding his arm.

"So am I done?" Shepard asked.

"No… Those were just the tasks. We still have to connect our suit environments!" Tali said happily.

Shepard sighed. His bones weren't going to allow him to move him anywhere. He looked at Tali with eyes that could only be described as devoid of all energy. Tali giggles.

"You can sleep before we do that! The hard part is out of the way now!" Tali said.

"Good…" Shepard took two steps before he lost track of his footing and toppled over taking the table with him.

Tali looked at the tired commander roll over and smile weakly at her.

"You can't get those fans in here to carry me to my room by any chance can you?" Shepard joked.

"Of course Shepard. We are your family now." Shala said lowering her arm.

A flood of quarians filled the room. Shepard felt the many hands grab him and lift him. He felt weightless like he was in space. Like he was in space… With Tali… and the dark form of Harbinger approaching sending a shadow of across the galaxy, yet Shepard felt a new confidence as he found an entire fleet now in his alliance.


	35. Chapter 35: Rest and Relaxation

Shepard fell into the soft bed of his room. The pillows felt like heaven on his face, and the mattress felt like a pool of ecstasy. Shepard smiled as he hugged the pillow tightly. He closed his eyes and felt the stiffness of his body begin to melt away.

"I knew you could do it Shepard… I just knew it…" Tali said sitting on the bed next to him though she knew she wouldn't be able to touch him how she wanted to touch him. "They tried to dissuade me, but I fought through the despair. I couldn't believe what the Admiralty Board did to you… I mean they didn't need to do that! You've served the Flotilla more admirably than most quarians yet they still force you to go through that stupid test! Can you believe that Shepard?" Tali spouted.

Shepard snored in response. Tali looked over at Shepard's face.

"Shepard?…" Tali asked staring into the closed eyes of Shepard.

She almost laughed when she saw the edge of the pillow moisten from Shepard drooling. She stood up and pranced to the door. She turned around to regard Shepard again as he slept.

"Good night Shepard…" Tali whispered as she left the room.

She didn't even make it four feet down the hallway when a small group of quarians walked around the corner. They all pointed excitedly at her and started running towards her.

"Tali'Zorah? Tali! Hey Tali!" The lead quarian yelled. The others added in harmoniously to his words.

"Yes? What is it?" Tali asked as they almost knocked her over.

"Is Commander Shepard in there?" The young quarian asked.

Tali looked at the door and back to the, best described as, teenage quarians.

"Yes…" She said painfully trying to force herself to create a lie instead.

"Can we talk to him?" The boy asked.

"He's extremely tired. He needs to sleep." Tali said staring at the spunky young quarian.

"Well, can you tell me when he is awake?" The boy asked sadly.

"I will try to-" Tali started.

"Great!" The boy yelled as he scampered down the hall with the rest of his excited friends.

"Shepard's gaining quite a fan base…" Tali said feeling a bit odd about her words. It just felt like something was amiss in the universe, but she shrugged it off and walked back to the Common room.

Garrus and Miranda were sitting in the corner of the room. Miranda's lips were almost touching Garrus's mouth. He leaned in and closed the gap and they made the best kiss that a human and turian could share. Tali smiled at their blossoming relationship. She walked over to one of the tables and sat down to think. Mordin sat down beside her.

"Tali'Zorah. Pleasure. Finished experiments on strange substance found on Pragia. Mysterious. Took some time… but. Found something interesting. Messes with proteins. Very unique. Brings into a harmonious balance of levin- and dextro-proteins." Mordin said.

Tali leaned in closer to the news. "So what your saying is-" Tali started.

"Yes. Your hypothesis would be correct. It would allow a flowering relationship between levin-protein and dextro-protein species in the galaxy. You and Shepard. Miranda and Garrus. All with fruitful relationships." Miranda said with a smile and a stare that indicated that he was waiting for Tali to catch on.

"Fruitful?" Tali asked staring Mordin more.

"You know what I mean…" Mordin said.

"But I thought you said it was possible for it to work… before the water?" Tali whispered.

"Work? Yes. But serious health risks in those weeks of pregnancy. Very dangerous to your health. Most likely die from infection, or severe reaction. Of sorts." Mordin trailed off in his thoughts.

"So this child… What will it?…" Tali started to ask.

"Be? No idea. Some hybrid species I would assume. Humans-quarians share same number of chromosomes. With genetic therapy, the baby should also transgressed sterility." Mordin stated.

"Will it… have my immune system?" Tali asked weakly.

"Doubtful. Quarian gene for immune deficiency is less dominant than human gene for survivability. You yourself will have a boost of your own immune system from holding such a child with you." Mordin answered.

Tali stared at him only briefly before her eyes looked nervously around the top of the table. She started breathing harder as her lungs demanded more air for her. Then curiosity drove her to ask another question.

"How about Miranda's and Garrus's kid?" Tali asked.

Mordin stared at her. The smile twitched on his face for just a moment. "It should be fine for Garrus…" Mordin said.

"What about Miranda?" Tali asked.

"She will have an interesting time. More interesting than most women of her caliber." Mordin said.

"Caliber?" Tali asked.

"Turians are scaled. Sharp. Very painful against the skin. Birthing process…" Mordin cringed. "Very unpleasant."

Tali looked over at the happy couple who were now rubbing their noses together. She felt a small amount of pity for Miranda. She was nice enough and had her qualities. She never disrespected Tali even though she was part of Cerberus. She would probably have to be there when she would give birth, that is, if they even thought about having a kid. She watched as Mordin made his way over to Garrus and Miranda's table. She looked through the crowds of quarians to find her other crew mates.

She saw Jacob sitting with a group of young quarians. He was showing him his gun and telling them how it worked. Tali shook her head at the scene. Kal'Reegar and Zaeed walked past talking about their military exploits. Tali smiled as they talked happily amongst themselves. Kasumi was sitting at a table with Thane. Tali couldn't hear what they were talking about, but she assumed that it had to do some stealth techniques or something along those lines.

Jack was lounging on one of the tables, lounging in the artificial sunlight. Joker was actually out and about, too. Tali watched as he played 'starship' with some of the kids. He still moved stiffly with his weak bones, but he seemed to be enjoying himself. Samara was meditating with a few other quarian males who were looking more at her chest than her actions. Tali laughed at the spectacle. She bet that none of them had even guessed that that was what they looked like. She reclined back and felt the warmth of the artificial sun on her suit. The overall harmony of the room was so soothing that Tali could have fallen asleep then and there, but the harmony equally brought her back. She leaned back forwards again, but nearly jumped out of her suit when she saw Legion standing in front of her.

"Creator Tali'Zorah… May we sit?" Legion said looking at the spot beside her.

Tali still didn't trust the robot, but her respect for him had grown considerably through the time that she had been stuck with him. Tali slid over and Legion took his seat though he looked a bit perplexed at the idea of sitting.

"Are you enjoying yourself Legion?" Tali asked.

"Yes." Legion answered.

Tali looked at him, confused. _How did a machine enjoy itself?_

"How have you enjoyed yourself?" Tali asked, feigning disinterest.

"I modified thirty-one of your vessel's shields and hull plating. I calibrated forty-seven of your fleets engines. I have improved the efficiency of the fleets performance by fifteen percent. And…" Legion stopped.

"And?" Tali asked failing to feign disinterest.

"I made what you organics would call friends…" Legion said with a few twists of his central eye followed by a pulse from his outside face panels.

"How many did you make? Three? Four?" Tali asked.

"I counted around nearly three hundred Creator mechanics have referred to me as their friend." Legion said.

"Three Hundred!?" Tali almost yelled, but managed to keep it quiet.

"Yes." Legion answered.

"I'm glad to see you getting along with everyone…" Tali said looking back up to the bright artificial sun. Legion looked up too.

"Your planet is 99 percent complete…" Legion said quietly.

Tali looked back at him with those seeking eyes. Legion knew more than he was letting everyone believe. She just knew it, but before she could question the geth sniper, he had made his way over to some mechanics who were waving him over. She watched him leave, but she couldn't help but smile at how the mood against the geth had changed so drastically in these couple of days. Shala walked into the room.

Shala sat where Legion had just rose and sat by Tali. She stared at her for some time before she too raised her head to take in the warm rays through her visor.

"I can't even tell you how proud I am for you Tali. Your father would be so proud of you if he could see you now…" Shala said.

The words hit Tali like a wall. Her mind fell back to that fateful day on the Alerei.

* * *

Shepard stopped in front of her and didn't move. She moved to the side to see what he was looking at, but that made her life take a turn for the worse. She couldn't believe what she saw. On the floor was her father. There was no way that he was dead. She ran past Shepard to her father's body.

"Father!" Tali barely managed to say.

Shepard could only watch her as she struggled to cope with the discovery.

"No, no, no! You always had a plan. Masked life signs or-or an on-board medical stasis program, maybe. You! You wouldn't…" Tali struggled for words as her sorrow became a desperate anger. "They're wrong! You wouldn't just die like this! You wouldn't leave me to clean up your mess! You can't…" Tali cried out.

Shepard couldn't take seeing her like this. He grabbed her shoulder.

"Hey. Hey, come here." Shepard tried to say as soothing as he could.

Tali turned and with a grief stricken conscious she hugged Shepard without thinking about it. All she had now was her love for Shepard. Her hidden love for him. She wished she could tell him now, then maybe…maybe he just might… She shrugged it off during the hug. The hat tears began to fall down her face. A sensation that had only plagued her when the first Normandy had exploded. When Shepard had… died… She was right back where she was two years ago at that moment. They embraced each other for the longest time.

"Damn it! Damn it! I'm sorry" Tali cried out through her sobs. She was acting selfish with that act, yet she didn't even connect that Shepard had hugged her back with the same passion as she had.

"You've got nothing to be sorry about." Shepard said.

"Maybe… He would have known I would come. Maybe he left a message." Tali managed to say through the sadness that still crept through her.

"Tali. If you are listening to this then I am dead…" were the final words that she remembered before the memory began to fade.

* * *

She fell from her memory when Shala touched her shoulder. She was looking at her now.

"I'm sorry for bringing him up Tali. I shouldn't have spoiled your happiness." Shala said.

"I'm okay Shala. It's still a bit hard to accept it still." Tali said.

"I understand. The ceremony will start whenever you wish it to. We may have to find a bigger ship to hold all of Shepard's new fans." Shala laughed.

Tali laughed too. Shepard was quite a character, and it appeared that even though they were married it just felt like he was a new man everyday. He was always performing some miracle or some impossible feat with ease. He always seemed to understand and mold himself to every situation. She always thought to herself. 'Wow, Tali! How did you manage to fall in love with this amazing man?' She always asked this question to herself from the day that she fell in love with him.

Veetor walked into the room with Mordin right beside him. Tali didn't even notice that he had left. She looked over where Garrus and Miranda was sitting and saw only an empty table. Most of the people had left by this time. Tali looked down at her Omni-tool and found that she had been there for almost three hours. She stood up quickly and walked quickly back to Shepard's room.

He was still laying on the bed snoring loudly. Tali decided that she should take his armor off so he could sleep more comfortably. She peeled the armor pieces off of him delicately. The chest piece slid off easily revealing the bloody mess under his armor. Tali cringed at the sight. She continued to take the thick armor off while Shepard continued to snore. She completely stripped him down to his under clothes which were drenched with blood. She didn't even know a human could hold that much blood. She looked at Shepard for some time. She admired this man. No man would ever give this much blood for her. She took the last antibiotic-booster, and took off her mask. She kissed Shepard good night and left to go get some sleep in her own room. Tomorrow was going to be a long day.


	36. Chapter 36: Krog's Plan is Revealed

Shepard awoke from what felt like an eternity. He removed the covers and rubbed his eyes tiredly as his vision focused on the details of the room. He looked down at his hands which burned irritatingly as he rubbed his eyes. Large gashes had broken through his worn hands which were equally and painfully covered in blisters. Shepard's popped back into place as he stretched his hands above his head. His body felt lighter than it had when he had entered the room.

Shepard found his armor slung over a chair in the room. The sight caused him to look down to make sure he was wearing something. He found a blood covered shirt with matching pants. Shepard scratched his head as he remembered the ordeals that he had to face. He stood up only to fall back down as he felt his swollen ankle yell at him. Shepard lifted the ankle to see the large puffy skin bulging at the seams. Shepard sighed as he slowly rotated the stiff ankle.

He tried to stand again, but this time he held himself up with the bed and the walls, avoiding any and all contact with his tender ankle. He walked to what he thought was a shower which happily it was. Shepard turned the water on and took a shower with his clothes on; they needed cleaned anyways. Shepard had forgot what relaxation has felt like after those grueling days. He smiled happily as the water softly dripped from his nose.

Shepard heard the door to his room 'ding' open. He leaned around the corner to see Shala standing there with a clean set of clothes. She saw him and quickly diverted her eyes.

"I'm sorry for intruding Commander Shepard, but Tali told me that you would be needing new clothes." Shala said.

Shepard looked at the pile of clothes and saw the ceremonial robe that he had won from one of the challenges. He smiled and went back to the soothing waterfall of water that was falling in the closet sized cubicle that they had set up for him. The run-off water was red from the blood that slowly washed off of Shepard's body. The clothes began to feel heavy so Shepard decided that he had better take them off. He flung each of the clothes off to the side to soak.

Shepard grabbed the towel that was placed on the outside of the door and walked out of shower with it wrapped tightly around him. Shala was still there with her arms folded in her lap standing in the doorway. She nervous diverted her attention again.

"I came to teach you how to put your robes on Commander Shepard… if you wish for me to…" Shala said respectfully.

"Your and Admiral, yet you seem to be treating me like you are my servant… Why is that?" Shepard asked picking up the clean undershirt and slipping it over himself.

"You have been an inspiration for us Commander…" Shala said.

"Really? For just completing some challenges?" Shepard asked as he took the robe off to put on some underwear. Shala became exceptional nervous. Shepard was too tired to care.

"Challenges…" Shala's mind broke off as she struggled to turn away from the bottomless Commander, but she managed to regain control. "They weren't just challenges Shepard… They were tests for your obligation to the Flotilla, but more importantly how you are to Tali. Those challenges are designed to be impossible. Or, at least, so close to impossible that no one can pass them."

"That seems kind of heartless," Shepard said as he put on the pants that came with the robe.

"It has been a tradition ever since we were almost driven to extinction. We had to preserve as many able-bodies quarians to reproduce our dwindling numbers…" Shala said almost remorsefully.

"But now you have your planet back!" Shepard said happily.

"We still don't trust the geth, but we have agreed to give your… 'Legion'… a chance. I guess its our way of being the first to act in favor for the geth…" Shala said.

"I'm glad you accepted his news so readily." Shepard said, buckling his boots up.

"We didn't… Not really… We decided to discuss it while keeping the high morale on the ships. We needed that boost, Shepard. Something to hope for…" Shala said.

"You don't trust him still, do you?" Shepard asked staring Shala in the face.

Shala diverted her gaze from those piercing, knowing eyes. "No, but he is showing great promise." Shala said.

"If there is anything I can do to speed up your decision… just ask." Shepard said.

"We will… now that you're with us now…" Shala said as she turned to leave the room. She stopped in the doorway and cocked her head back to Shepard. She struggled to say what had been itching in her mind. "Thank-you for doing this for Tali…" She said in almost a whisper.

"Your welcome…" Shepard said with nod.

Shepard looked at the robes and almost from memory of watching Tali put hers on, he had managed to slip it on like a professional. He looked in the one mirror and gave a few poses before he limped out of the room to the medical bay. Hopefully, they could fix his ankle up before the bonding ceremony.

* * *

Tali walked through the halls of the familiar ship. She had walked these halls many times when she was younger. Her father always told her to stop running. She smiled at those happy moments on the Rayya. She turned a corner and squeezed passed a small group of quarians talking amongst themselves. One waved to her as he passed. She waved back. She had made the same circle around the ship almost ten times before she decided to get something to eat.

Along the way she walked past Shepard's room. She decided to check on him again. She opened the door and found the room empty except for a pile of wet bloody clothes hanging to dry by the closet. She wondered where he had gone to. The front of her visor fogged slightly, but just enough for Tali to know that she had just missed him.

She decided to check the mess hall for him since eating was his second best profession followed by saving the galaxy… Tali laughed at her own thoughts and walked towards the mess hall. She walked past the large glass windows of the med bay. She didn't even turn her head to look at the quarian having his ankle checked out, though it did seem quite odd. Tali almost brushed it off, but decided to see why her mind was nagging at her.

At first, she saw nothing wrong as the robed quarian was looking down at his swollen ankle. She stared at that ankle for some time and realized that it wasn't a quarian sitting in that room; it was a human, and not any human, but Shepard! Tali tapped on the glass. Shepard looked up enough to look just past the bottom of the top of the hood. Tali waved quickly before placing her hands behind her back and bouncing in place. She was happy to see that happy smile spread across Shepard's face as he waved back. The size of Shepard's ankle was truly a sight to behold.

Tali made her way to the door to the bay, and opened the door. The quarian doctor looked at her and waved her away.

"Can't you see I'm busy trying to fix this ankle… If you have an appointment please, take a seat…" The doctor said as he twisted Shepard's ankle while applying a generous dose of medi-gel.

Tali walked past the doctor and hugged Shepard tightly.

"Oh… Sorry Tali… Didn't know it was you…" The doctor said, returning to his work.

"It's okay, Gern… I understand that you are busy." Tali said. She looked at Shepard's new robes. "Bonding robes…" She placed her hand on his chest and leaned in closer to feel his body against hers. "They look so striking on you…" Tali said, romantically tracing some of the designs on his robes.

"You like it?" Shepard asked. "It reminded me of you…"

"That's so sweet of you Shepard… You didn't have- I mean thank-you." She said struggling to fight back her selflessness for just this once. "So what happened to your ankle?"

"You know… had to fix an engine…" Shepard said chuckling slightly.

Tali joined in the laughter. "You actually learned something from me?" Tali asked.

"I learned from the best?" Shepard said, smiling slyly.

"Pshh, I'm good, but I'm not the best Shepard…" Tali said.

"You're the best to me…" Shepard said widening his sly smile.

Tali pushed him gently on the shoulder.

"You planned that didn't you?" Tali yelled.

"Hook, line, and sinker!" Shepard said, giving a victorious arm pump.

"Can you please sit still…" Gern asked, annoyed of course.

"Sorry." Shepard said wrapping his arms around Tali's slender waist.

"I can't believe we made it this far…" Tali said, pulling herself closer to him.

"It's been worth it…" Shepard said.

Tali pulled back so she could look into Shepard's eyes. Those dark glittering balls were simply amazing. Every time he looked at her she fell into their dark beauty. Her focus switched between both of his eyes as she felt her cheeks begin to burn with her love for him. She wanted to simply rip her mask off and kiss him right then and there, but she knew that that would ruin all of their hard work up to this point. She backed away from Shepard's hands which slowly fell from as she moved out of reach.

"I'll see you there, Shepard." She said before she walked out of the room.

Shepard smiled as she left and followed where she was walking through the wall. A sharp pain in his ankle drove him to look down at the doctor.

"Damn! What was that for!" Shepard yelled.

"I'm sorry to inform you that you ankle is broken…" The doctor said.

"What!?" Shepard yelled.

* * *

Krog found himself back on Omega, that filthy hole of scum and disease, reminded him of home. He was searching for someone who he had seen walk into this market countless times or at least someone of his species. Almost like his prayers were answered, Kenn walked nervously around the corner to haggle a ship seller for a cheap ship. Krog looked at Kenn and laughed as he stumbled over the haggle. He was almost pitiful in his attempt.

Krog stepped forwards and placed a hand on Kenn's shoulder. He felt the small jolt of fear rock Kenn's body as he gripped him tightly, but at that moment that wasn't his concern.

"I heard my friend here wants to buy a ship!" Krog said happily.

Kenn looked at him with a a confused look showing in his glowing eyes. He breathed out a broken breath afraid of what was happening. The Batarian on the other side of the counter stared at Krog with hateful eyes.

"This dirty quarian has been bugging me daily for me to sell him a ship, but he doesn't offer me anything, if you know what I mean." the shopkeeper said.

Krog pulled out his credit chit through the receiver bay to review his credits. The Batarian nearly fell over as the numbers continued to climb. Kenn could only watch at the never ending stream of numbers grow bigger and bigger. He looked up nervously at the large Krogan and gulped loudly. He didn't like this at all.

"So how much for the best ship you got?" Krog said, flipping through the public catalog.

"W-well as you c-can see from the c-c-catalog…" The Batarian stammered as the numbers flew past the two billion mark.

"I can see what is in the catalog! Do you think I don't know about the black market? Now show me the goods!" Krog yelled angrily as he pointed out some of the ships to Kenn as if he was a close friend. Kenn tried to play along.

The Batarian cleared his throat. He flipped a long sequence of codes into the pad in front of him. Krog quickly memorized the code to save till a better time. The catalog instantly changed to almost five hundred pages of pirated ships. Krog browsed them nonchalantly for his own ship had been pirated, by him of course. Kenn looked around nervously trying to find some escape, but the firm grip of Krog denied such escape.

"This one!" Krog said pointing to a large greenhouse- eco-producer ship.

"That is a very rare ship…" The Batarian said nervously.

Krog looked over as his money ticked past the 100 billion mark.

"Does it look like I will have troubles paying for this ship?" Krog asked menacingly.

"No! No! I'm sorry… umm…" The Batarian tried to connect his thoughts.

"How much?" Krog asked.

"What?"

"How much you worm, and it had better be a reasonable price or you won't have a mouth to say what again!" Krog said angrily.

"500 million…" the Batarian said which was half of what he had been holding it for.

"You got yourself a deal!" Krog said, happily pressing the button to transfer the funds. "I gave you a little extra for your generosity."

"Th-thank you sir…" the Batarian said.

Krog turned to Kenn who yelped at the brutal stare of Krog.

"There you are quarian… That will impress your fleet…" Krog said.

"Why did you do that for me?" Kenn asked nervously.

"Because I'm going to ask you a favor…" Krog said staring into the afraid eyes of Kenn.

"What do you want?" Kenn asked shaking nervously.

"I want to go see the Migrant Fleet of course… Particularly the Rayya… You see, my friend is going through the quarian bonding ritual and he is getting bonded tonight, but upon arriving at the Fleet, they denied me entrance. I didn't want my friend to think I skipped out so I decided to try to help a friendly quarian to help me see it." Krog said innocently.

"I don't think they will let you-" Kenn started.

"I don't have any guns… I promise" Krog said displaying his unarmed body.

"I did hear about the bonding ritual… Are you a friend of Shepard's?" Kenn asked.

"You know Shepard?" Krog asked excitedly.

"He helped me get out of a tight spot a while back." Kenn said.

"Yes I'm his friend!" Krog said laughing gruffly at the end.

"Who? Might I ask?" Kenn asked.

"Wrex Urdnot!" Krog lied. "One of Shepard's closest friends!"

"I think I heard him talk about you briefly! Of course I'll take you!" Kenn said, gaining a more confident pose.

"Thanks, buddy! I'll be sure to give a nice gift of credits for doing this for me!" Krog said as a sly crooked grin grew over his broken face.


	37. Chapter 37: Quarian Bonding Ritual

The whole ship quickly became a bustle of quarians. The large common room was quickly designed into a glorious design of streamers and banners with quarian characters of good fortune and blessings of happiness. Most of the quarians were standing in excited groups of social cells that were exchanging tales of the heroic groom. They talked of his bravery at the sight of danger, his wits, and, strangely, how he fancied quarian women. Many of the groups giggled as tales of Shepard's more romantic adventures began to spread.

Tali sat in a separate room from the large group of people. She had the door cracked just enough to watch the large congregation of quarian friends and relatives. She was feeling those nerves of hers begin to act up. She brought her hands nervously together and began to rub them. Shala caught the all-too-familiar indicator of Tali's nervousness compelling her to give some words of wisdom to calm her.

"You will be fine Tali'Zorah… You need to relax." Shala said soothingly.

Tali closed the door to the room and looked at Shala nervously. "I know Shala, it's just… I've never seen this many people for a bonding ceremony before…" Tali said, looking back to the closed door.

"You both are famous among the Flotilla now… This is going to be a colossal undertaking for both of our species. Maybe this will open a better diplomatic position with the humans." Shala said.

"Shala!" Tali yelled. "This isn't a diplomatic marriage!"

"I know Tali. I'm just looking at the benefits that this will produce for us. Call it bad habit." Shala said.

"I'm sorry Shala… I'm just afraid of this-all of this!" Tali said sitting down hard on the chair.

"You love him Tali…" Tali looked at Shala. "That is all that matters now. Keep that in mind and just do everything we say, and you will be done." Shala said.

"I don't think its going to be that easy…" Tali said.

"Your thinking too much about it." Shala said rising to her feet. "Now get ready. I need to check and see how Shepard is doing. Keelah Se'lai."

"Keelah Se'lai…" Tali said as the din of the outside muffled all other sounds.

Shala pushed her way through the large crowd to the room opposite of Tali's. She opened the door to find the doctor taping Shepard's ankle. Shepard looked up at her, his face red with pain. The sweat on his brow showed that he had been there for quite sometime. Shala looked at the doctor wrapping the ankle and back to Shepard a few times before speaking.

"Are you sure you want to do this today?" Shala asked.

"Yes! I can handle it!" Shepard said painfully.

"Are you sure Commander?" Shala asked again.

"I'm fine. I'm fine." Shepard said in a more soothed tone.

The doctor backed away from the wrapped ankle and admired his work. He packed up his supply kit and, with a cautious nod to Shala, left the two alone. Shepard twisted his ankle painfully around as Shala painfully watched him.

"So is there nothing that our doctors can do?" Shala asked.

"They've done a superb job, but this needs time to heal…" Shepard said, slipping a metal brace on his foot.

"We can post-pone the ceremony if you wish." Shala said.

"Is Tali nervous?" Shepard asked.

"Very…" Shala responded.

"Then we do it today…" Shepard said, slipping the boot over the brace concealing the damage that had been done to his ankle.

"Very well…" Shala said.

She bowed respectfully as she left the room. As she closed the door, She caught sight of Kal'Reegar leaning on the wall.

"How is he Ma'am?" Kal asked.

"He is more stubborn than you… Broken ankle." Shala explained.

Kal'Reegar shook her head. "Shepard seems to be that way…" He said.

"So is Tali…" Shala said.

"What a couple…" Kal said.

"Yes, they are quite the couple… though I have come to the knowledge that you liked Tali, Kal…" Shala said staring at Kal'Reegar.

He turned away from her and cleared his throat. "I did… Ma'am…" Kal said slowly. "But I'm glad that she picked Shepard… At least I know she will be safe…"

"Glad to see that it isn't tearing you down." Shala said.

"There will be others like Tali… I'm sure of it…" Kal said looking in the crowd in a hope that one would walk out.

"I'm sure there will be another like her… Maybe you should talk to some of her friends." Shala said as she disappeared in the crowd.

Kal'Reegar looked at her as she slowly vanished deeper into the crowd. For the first time he felt his face burn with emotion. He looked around as if people would be able to see the look on his face, and decided to leave without a word.

* * *

Krog walked over to the large eco-ship sitting comfortably in the docking bay. He turned to look at the quarian who slowly walked in amazement at the large craft. He had never seen such a magnificent ship before as he tried to take it all in at once.

"Hurry up! The ceremony will be starting soon!" Krog yelled impatiently.

Kenn looked at the Krogan and picked up his pace.

"Sorry…" Kenn said.

They both boarded the ship, and made their way to the bridge. Kenn sat in the captain's chair. Krog walked over to the engine control panel and quickly deciphered how it worked and started the engines. The ship was faster than Krog thought possible for it being just an eco-ship. He made it to the mass relay in less than three minutes.

Kenn looked around at all of the lights and the cleanliness of the bridge.

"Wow! I never thought I… Wow!" Kenn said, spinning in the chair happily.

Krog smiled to, but for a far more sinister reason than the oblivious quarian who spun like a roulette of an ancient revolver in his chair. Krog laughed at the metaphor in his head, and even more at the primitive weapon. He transferred all of the energy from the shields and placed them in the engines. The ship sped up considerably and, upon reviewing the specs of the shield system, Krog was impressed. Kenn laughed as he felt the acceleration.

Krog turned to Kenn and smiled wide. He liked this quarian. He was just so… innocent. Krog laughed at his thoughts. Kenn stopped spinning in the chair and stared at Krog.

"Hey! Tell me about yourself!" Kenn said happily.

Krog felt generous this day. He turned the chair around so he was staring directly at him. "Very well… Kenn, was it?" Kenn nodded. "It's been awhile since I've told anybody my history so you're in luck!" Krog said.

Kenn laughed and pumped his arms. He leaned forwards to listen to the tale.

"I was born into a rough family, a drunken, deranged Battlemaster. He wanted to kill me when I was born; he called me weak. Most of my life was abuse, but that only made me wiser to the world. I became stronger as each strong fist hit my skull or ribs. I waited and I trained in secret. I worked harder than any other Krogan in that mining camp. My father began to respect me more, but his hate for me still outweighed everything."

"I decided to fight back one day. I don't know why I decided to fight, I blame it on my genetics." Krog laughed. "Anyways. He hit me, and I totally lost it… I smashed my father's brains out with a shovel. The other miners gave me a nickname… 'Krog'… I think they were making fun of me because the name 'Krog' is so close to Krogan, see? I didn't like the name, but it was better than being nameless in that dump!"

"So I took that name for most of my life. I worked many odd jobs and eventually fell into the mercenary group, Blood Pack… Happily, I left that bunch and decided to work as a scientist… I know! I know! A krogan scientist? That's absurd! But I can tell you this! I was smarter than some of the Salarians in that lab. I was either born with that gift or it was beat into my head by my father, but either way, it paid the bills. After making a couple of large discoveries in the fields of Krogan physiology, I settled down a rich krogan. I decided to go to the Citadel where I met Shepard." Krogan began to lie.

"By this time I had changed my name to a more respected name, Wrex. I helped Shepard save the galaxy from Saren, and I settled down on Tuchunka where I started to unite the Krogan race." Krog said, showering in his own false light.

"That is impressive and sad…" Ken said. "I can't believe they called you Krog! That is such a stupid name!"

Krog laughed at himself. He turned back to the navigation panel and saw that they were nearing their destination.

"Here you go Kenn… Say you password thingy and clear the way, the ceremony will be starting at any moment!" Krog shouted.

Kenn looked over the captain's chair and found the comm. He flicked it on to receive the message. The voice came clearly into the ship requesting the authorization of the ship. Kenn quickly answered and gave his password. They were escorted to the clean station which quickly cleared the ship of any hostile germs. Kenn walked to the door as the ship was transferred over to the Rayya docking bay. Krog smiled as the ship's door opened revealing armed guards. Upon seeing Krog, they lifted their guns up to his head. Kenn quickly raised his hands.

"No, no, no! He's just a friend! A friend of Shepard's! Wrex Urdnot? Heard of him? Yeah? Okay! We are here for the ritual?" Kenn asked, implying that he didn't know where he was supposed to go.

"It's happening right now! You better hurry. It's in the common room of the ship." One of the guards said.

"Thanks!" Kenn said grabbing Krog by the arm to guide him to the correct room.

* * *

Shepard limped his way out of his room. The crowd had parted, leaving a long hallway that met in a T- in the middle. Tali walked out from the other door, and looked across the room to see Shepard standing in his ceremonial robes. _He looks so sexy in those robes…_ Tali thought to herself. She gave one final rub of her hands before forcing them down to her sides.

They both started walking towards each other at the same time. Their steps fell in unison and equal distance as they reached the center of the T- at the same time. Shepard smiled as they almost touched each other in the middle. Tali fidgeted with her hands a few more times before she looked nervously around the room; she wanted to leave.

They turned and walked up the aisle way to the podium where Shala and the other Admirals were standing. Tali turned to Shepard and whispered to him.

"Shepard… I'm afraid…" Tali said.

"Afraid of what?" Shepard whispered back.

"Nervous… I'm nervous, and all these people are making it worse…" Tali whispered, shifting her eyes to the large number of people.

"Imagine they aren't there…" Shepard suggested.

"I can't…" Tali whispered back.

They walked up the three stairs and turned to each other. Shepard smiled at her and looked out at the mass of people. The one back door opened, and he saw Kenn run in. He was about to whisper something to Tali when he saw the large form of a krogan walk into the room. The krogan immediately looked at Shepard and waved. Shepard's heart stopped as he guessed who it was. He turned to Tali.

"Krog's here!" Shepard whispered to Tali.

"What?" Tali whispered.

"Krog's-" Shepard started, but was cut off by the start of the ceremony.

"We have come here today to see that Tali'Zorah vas Normandy and her worthy chosen partner, John Shepard, Commander of the Normandy to be bonded for life…" Shala started.

The crowd cheered in response. The loudest of the crowd was the small assortment of Shepard's crew in the front rows. Shepard gave a show of laughter, but he kept his eye on the Krogan sitting in the back. Shepard turned back to Tali who stared at him nervously.

"You may now take each other's hands and lock them showing the everlasting bond that you will hold." Shala commanded.

Shepard and Tali laced their hands together like so many times before, but this time it felt different.

"Take a step forward to show the love that you two share with each other…" Shala continued.

Shepard and Tali stepped close to each other. Tali looked down at their bodies that were inches apart. Her body pounded with a mixture of excitement and nervousness as their stomachs almost touched from a collective breath in. They felt closer than ever before as their hands felt like they were locked for eternity together. Their energies were so powerful and so close together that it pulled them together like a magnet. Everything felt like it had gone back to the first day that they had met. A serene moment of pure connection. Krog quickly faded from Shepard's memory.

"Bring the bond…" Shala said.

A quarian walked out from the side of the Admirals holding a strip of cloth. He wrapped it tightly around Shepard's and Tali's laced hands and returned to his position. Shepard could feel that Tali was shaking, and he quickly figured out why. He saw that she was trying to stop herself from crying. _We must be getting close to the end…_ Shepard thought to himself. Shala stepped forwards and took hold of the bonded hands. With an ease that seemed almost unnatural, Shala pulled the hands apart, but each hand still had the bond wrapped around it.

Shepard looked at his hand to try to see the rip, tear, or cut that she had made in the fabric, but it appeared to be more of an exact clone from when they had their hands together. Tali's hand sported the same fabric with the same knot tied in it. Shepard felt his heart skip a few beats on that one. Shala took their hands and placed them on their partner's shoulder.

"As long as these bonds exist…" Shala held her hands out to the hands on the couple's shoulders. "… then there will be no other. They will stay with each other through all dangers and misfortunes. We welcome this joyous couple and give them the best of wishes. Keelah Se'lai." Shala said.

"Keelah Se'lai," echoed the room.

Shepard and Tali could only stare at each other in this moment. Shala's words echoed in their heads. They knew what it meant to be bonded. Their love grew ten fold at that moment, yet neither had the strength or will to make a move. Everything seemed so perfect and serene at that moment. Those thirty seconds felt like at least thirty years to Shepard. For Tali, it felt like those two years that she had to live with the idea that Shepard had died. She looked over to Shala who raised her arms up, and she began to clap.

The room exploded with the largest explosion of applause and whooping and cheering. Shepard and Tali managed to break the paralysis and walk into the crowd with their hands still holding each other. The congratulations were immense as the hundreds of quarians crowded around the first legitimate quarian and human bonded couple. Garrus and Miranda yelled their congratulations through the deafening cheer. Shepard continued to turn through the crowd shaking the hands of all hands that were offered to him, but then he felt a pressure of someone really tall and extraordinarily powerful grabbing his shoulder. Krog.

Shepard turned slowly to see the masked krogan standing behind him. He patted Shepard three times on the back almost knocking Shepard down.

"Shepard! Glad to see you're still alive and that you have married your fearless quarian warrior a second time! I give you all the humble tidings and respect for you Shepard!" Krog caught the look in Shepard's eyes. "No! No! No! I'm not here to start anything! I came to tell you that Liara wishes to speak with you! If you do, however, then I will have to fight you! So please tell me you can't!" Krog said excitedly.

"I will go…" Shepard said cautiously.

Tali turned around to look at Shepard and saw the familiar towering figure standing in front of Shepard. She also saw that the krogan clearly holding Shepard's shoulder firmly. She walked over and laced her arm into Shepard's arm. Krog looked at her quickly.

"Congratulations! _Mrs._ Tali'Zorah vas Normandy!" Krog said taking a large exaggerated bow. "I knew that you two were perfect for each other! Haha!"

Kenn broke through the crowd. He sounded exceptionally happy.

"Shepard! Shepard! Look who I found on Omega! Your old friend Wrex!" Kenn said excitedly.

"Kenn… This isn't Wrex…" Shepard said slowly.

"Then who is it?" Kenn asked with a more nervous tone.

"It's a crazed 'hunter' that wants to kill me…" Shepard said.

Kenn backed away from the Krogan who turned to him.

"I mean no harm Kenn. I do have an ounce of respect in these old bones of mine!" Krog laughed heartily.

"You lied to me!" Kenn yelled.

"Actually I told you the truth. I just made up changing my name! Everything up to that was true!" Krog laughed heartily. "And the ship? It's yours! I bought it for you and the quarian people! You can thank this dashing young lady here for that! Truly changed my outlook on the quarians in battle!" Krog said clenching his fist. He turned to the door. "Now if you don't mind… I have jobs to attend to. Bye Shepard. I hope to see you when that ankle is better!" Krog laughed heartily as he vanished in the crowd.

Shepard looked down at his broken ankle and wondered how Krog had known. That krogan just knew everything, could see everything, and seemed to be everywhere. Shepard looked over o Tali who still held him close. Kenn scratched his head nervously.

"I'm so sorry Shepard! I can't even tell you how sorry I am! I'm so stupid! I should have known!" Kenn said.

"Don't beat yourself up about it Kenn… It was a simple mistake. Just be thankful that he didn't start anything." Shepard said.

Krog walked to the docked eco-ship. He entered it only to walk to the other side of the ship and entered that airlock. He stepped into his ship that he had attached to the outside of the eco-ship. He disengaged the large stealth emitters that he had installed on the ship. He was gone before anybody even knew he was there.


	38. Chapter 38: Normalcy

Tali and Shepard, shaken from the encounter of Krog, tried to not let that bother them. They proceeded to enjoy the celebrations, handshakes, and party events. The thought of Krog's visit was eventually replaced with the idea that that was his way of forming a treaty with Shepard, and he was finally making peace with him. In the back of Shepard's mind, however, he knew that that fantastical outcome was only a distant dream.

Shepard and Tali walked through the crowd with their bonded hands laced together in an unbreakable hold. The happiness that they both were sharing with each other could have never been matched in their lifetime as the waves of quarians patted Shepard on the back and gave familiar hugs to Tali. Everyone felt and acted like a family now. Eventually Shala walked up to Tali, and, after she gave her a hug, began to speak.

"Tali'Zorah… I'm so proud of you…" Shala said, giving Tali another hug.

"Thank-you Shala…" Tali said happily as Shala continued to embrace her.

"There is still the problem of replacing your father on the Admiralty Board…" Shala said quietly.

Tali looked into Shala's eyes after she took a step back. "I'm a candidate aren't I?" Tali asked.

"You have proven yourself an able member to the Fleet. It would be an honor having you to take your father's place…" Shala said.

"But wouldn't that mean…" Tali started.

"Yes you would have to stay here." Shala explained.

"You know I can't do that… I have to help Shepard" She turned to look at him briefly. "save the galaxy…"

"I figured that would be your answer… That is why we prepared a temporary Admiral that will hold your position until you are finished with your… Pilgrimage…" Shala said mockingly.

"Shala…" Tali said in a mixed tone of annoyance and happiness. Tali remembered before she went on her Pilgrimage two years ago that Shala had told her those words before, but more of a hypothetical standpoint.

Shepard Tali laced their arms together and left Shala who had started talking to other people. Garrus and Miranda ran up to Shepard. Miranda gave a large and excited hug to Tali. Shepard and Garrus gave a more 'manly' hug. Miranda wrapped her arm over Tali's shoulder and guided her away from Shepard and Garrus as she started to explain honeymoon plans. Tali gave a concerned, or was it happy, look back at Shepard. Shepard responded with a smile and a shrug as they vanished in he crowd.

Krog sat in his shuttle. He stared not out the window nor at his reflection, but something in between, something in his mind. He was happy for Shepard, but he knew he had missed a perfect opportunity to destroy Shepard and claim his prize, but Krog found that he preferred being almost killed by Shepard than him killing Shepard. Krog wondered if he actually wanted to die more than anything. He had everything, and he had killed everything except Shepard.

He knew letting Shepard go with his courteous words would most undoubtedly cause Shepard to think what was going through his mind, but, right now, Krog was wondering what was going through his mind. He wanted to kill Shepard. He wanted to kill Tali'Zorah. He wanted them both dead, but at the same time he wondered if this was the best choice. He just sat there: staring, thinking, staring, and thinking some more. He looked down at his throbbing leg. The thoughts of the grenade explosion at his feat; the heat, the force, the pain, and the deafening roar as Krog had ripped his own shield generator off and placing it on Shepard.

"Why did you do that Krog?" Krog asked himself.

_Because you wanted to kill him! You didn't want him to simply commit suicide!_ Krog thought.

For once in his life, he could not accept that answer. Something had driven him to make that sacrifice, but what? Krog punched the side of his ship leaving a prominent imprint. Krog stared at it and back at his bleeding hand. He finally just accepted his job. He would simply wait for Shepard at Illium.

Kal'Reegar walked down the halls of the Rayya. He was looking for something, but he didn't know what he was looking for. He took too sharp of a turn around one of the corners and rand straight into Kasumi Goto. They both lost their balance and fell, but were quickly up again. Kasumi looked at Kal for a second, sized him up, and checked if he had anything of value hanging loosely from his pockets. Kal tried to see her face, but the shadow cast from her hood appeared to be perpetually hiding her face.

"Sorry, it was an accident Ma'am. I am in a hurry." Kal said.

"So am I." Kasumi said.

"The bonding is down the hall to the right…" Kal answered.

Kasumi looked down the hallway and back at Kal.

"Aren't you going?" Kasumi asked.

Kal sighed. "I can't I have to check on the guards at the docking station. I have to make sure that no one ruins this ritual." Kal explained.

"Well, good luck with that…" Kasumi said, taking her leave.

Kal watched her walk for a few feet before he left. He made it to the docking station where the few guards were lounging around. He sat down with the rest of them and thought about the events that were going on in the room down the hall.

Moments later a large Krogan came around the corner. Kal watched him cautiously as he approached. The Krogan raised his hand in a wave as he passed. In his hand was the pass to the ship that was docked right behind Kal. Kal let him pass though he kept his finger on the trigger just in case. The doors closed and Kal waited for the large ship's engine to shake the room that they were in, but instead it was only a slight jolt and a low rumble. Kal looked at the airlock that clearly read that the ship was still attached.

"Must be a malfunction…" Kal said tapping the side of the panel.

He walked over to the window of the ship and saw the large ship still docked with another, quite smaller ship flying away. He reached over to the alarm, but stopped just about as he was going to press it. The ship was too far away for the alarms to do anything. He turned back to the guards who were now sitting and looking at Kal. He waved them down to resume their lounging.

He sat down and rubbed his head thoughtfully, looking out at the dark void of space. A small shimmer of the ship that had escaped with the Krogan in it flickered one final time before everything went black again. Kal'Reegar looked at his fellow quarian guards and marines and felt that the quarian people were equal in the galaxy. If there was going to be a human-quarian marriage then there might be other interspecies marriages. Maybe the galaxy is finally forgiving them all for creating the geth. Kal thought about it deeply, but was soon cut off by the approach of metallic feet.

Legion walked down the hallway straight at him. Kal still did not trust the geth sniper though he trusted him more than other geth and a few quarians. Legion kept a solid, unblinking stare at Kal for the entire journey down the hallway. He stopped directly in front of Kal, stared at him intently, and extended his hand. Kal quickly raised his gun thinking that Legion had a gun, but just as his finger was about to squeeze the trigger, Kal found that he was holding it out in a handshake.

Kal stared at the hand while he slowly lowered his rifle. Legion kept his eye on the gun as it fell, but returned his gaze to Kal after he assumed it was safe. Kal stared at him with a look of disgust mixed with confusion. He trusted Shepard; he trusted his crew, but trusting a geth after hating them for so long was not an easy feat. Sure, Legion had promised that the geth were giving back their planet, but the mixed feelings and distrust that filled the ship after that day was worse than every year that Kal had served in the Fleet.

Kal almost had to shrug off the distrust as he reached out his hand and grabbed Legion's. Legion shook it only three times, but he didn't let go.

"This is when you let go of my hand, geth…" Kal said.

Legion let go of his hand. "This installation has been called Legion, but we are geth…" Legion answered.

"I don't really care about your kind…" Kal said.

Legion gave Kal a hurt look on his expressionless face. Kal obviously didn't see it, and Legion barely noticed it. Legion turned to the right and walked down the other hallway towards engineering. He vanished behind the corner moments later.

"Do you think we should let him go to engineering?" One of the marines asked.

"He's not hurting anyone… An if he did… Shepard will deal with him." Kal said.

Shepard and Tali remained in the large, crowded Common Room for most of the day. Shepard found himself barraged with handshakes and pelted with back slaps. Tali suffered through the same congratulations. After almost three hours of excited quarians filing past them, they finally managed to sneak out of the room and to Shepard's room. Both of them were quiet at first, but after looking at each and how they cringed at the voices outside, they started to laugh. Tali found the light in the room so that they could see more than each other's faces. The light revealed a small wrapped present on Shepard's bed.

"What is this?" Tali asked, examining the decorated box.

"I don't know…" Shepard said, slowly walking to her side and sitting on the bed. "What does it say?" Shepard asked upon seeing a small tag on the side.

"Ooh… It says… To Tali. From Mordin." Tali said giving Shepard an embarrassed stare.

Shepard laughed at her and adjusted himself on the bed. Tali, as much as she enjoyed being in Shepard's 'intimate' company, was still nervous and embarrassed about people knowing what they were doing when they closed the door. She wondered if it would make any difference for the door being closed or open. Everyone always gave her that 'look' after she leaves the room with Shepard. She could feel the burn on her face as she tried to ignore those gazes and smirks.

"Aren't you going to open it?" Shepard asked with a smile.

Tali broke free from her nervous dive in her thoughts, and she looked down at the box in her hands. She slowly undid the ribbon and carefully peeled away the colorful paper. Underneath she found a metal box with a small data pad code lock. She typed in the code that was written on the other side of the tag. The box hissed open revealing an expanding set of syringes that lifted outside the confines of the box like a tackle box. One side of the box was labeled 'Tali'Zorah'. The other side said 'Shepard'.

"What is this?" Shepard asked.

"It's the water from Pragia…" Tali said quietly. "Genetically reengineered to speed the process of our bodies accepting one another…"

Shepard looked down at the syringes and back at Tali.

"So that means that eventually you'll…" Shepard started.

"Be free from my suit forever…" Tali said in almost disbelief.

The box sat in Tali's hands. She made no move to bring it closer to her as if it was poisonous nor did she push it away like it was a rotting salarian head. She held the secret to strengthening the entire quarian race in her hands, but only she could use it. Her entire family code, her obligation to the Fleet, could not be followed in this situation. She wanted to give it back to Mordin so that he could destroy it so that she wasn't better than the other quarians, but her love for Shepard, her desire to be with him, her desire to have him, drove her to keep it.

Shepard stared at the mental battle that Tali was facing. He pushed back his hood and placed his hand on Tali's. She jumped a little at his touch, and looked up into his eyes. Shepard grabbed the first syringe from his side and injected it into his arm. Tali watched him and picked up her syringe with weak hands. She wanted to as much as she didn't. She looked back into Shepard's eyes which drove her to the answer. She sealed off the side of her arms and stuck the needle through her suit and into her arm.

"You gave your people back Rannoch…" Shepard assured her. "Consider this your reward…"

"I can't…" Tali said weakly.

"I know how you feel… If you want to quit doing this after tonight… then we will." Shepard said.

"Thank you Shepard- I mean John… sorry… I'm just so used to… you know…" Tali stammered.

"I think you beat yourself up too much." Shepard said with a smile. He placed his hand on her shoulder and brought her in close. "This is for your safety… I don't want to see you die from an infection in the battlefield." Shepard said lovingly.

Tali looked at the syringes with new light. She never thought about using it as a safety precaution for fighting. She had assumed that Mordin was hinting at pregnancy, something that Tali was having mixed feelings about. She wanted to mention that to Shepard, but the rush of cool air on her face and the touch of Shepard's hand touching her inner thigh was enough for her to forget. The noises outside their room quickly died as the touching became more intimate. The thoughts of embarrassment and those insidious glares wisped away in her memory as the more pressing matter consumed her.

The room began to heat up as their body heat filled the small cubicle sized room. Tali felt the sweat run down the side of her body, running the length of her curves, a feeling that she had not felt since Pragia. She reached up and grabbed the back of Shepard's head to pull herself up to lock her lips to his. Her legs wrapped around waist as she passionately kissed Shepard. She acted instinctually to the moment as her body reacted exactly how it was supposed to.

Her heart pace quickened as the excitement grew, and her breathing became deeper as her body requested more. Tali felt the rhythm of Shepard's body, a rhythm that matched the frequency of her own body. For some reason, this time it felt more real. Maybe because there was no underlying guilt. Maybe because they were now legitimate. Tali briefly tried to think of these concepts, but the touch of Shepard's skin on hers only carried her away from those problems. She never could understand how soothing simple touching could be.

The feeling of the sweat on Shepard's skin and the strength of his embrace on her made all her worries leave her. She didn't fear the Reapers. She didn't feel embarrassed when she was in Shepard's arms. She slowly became aware of her breathing as it started becoming more strained. It became deeper at the same time that it became shorter. She realized that she had lost track of time in that room, and that she muscles were sore. Suddenly, all the feelings began to jolt through her body. She had been here before, but she knew that this time was going to be different. The tension of her muscles tightened as the feelings began to intensify. She wanted to tell Shepard now, but her body refused her that chance.

Tali woke up the next morning laying on Shepard's bare chest. She rested her head on it as she forced the grogginess to wake her up listening to Shepard's calm, relaxing heartbeat. She wondered how her heart sounded compared to his. Would it be softer? Louder? Faster? Slower? A different beat altogether? She couldn't figure out why she was asking herself these questions at this hour of the morning or whenever it was.

Shepard stirred slightly. It was enough for Tali to turn her head so she was looking at his closed eyes. She rubbed her hand along his chest which was still damp with last night's perspiration. She took a deep breath in and let it out slowly. She had forgot how the air had tasted unfiltered, how Shepard's skin felt without a slight tingle, and how she would have been stumbling around the room trying to get her suit on before her time was up. She felt free like she did on Pragia. She moved her head slightly on Shepard's chest. The medium length bluish hair tickled him just enough for Shepard to crack his eye awake.

Tali stared at him with a smile that could melt stone. Shepard reached up and ran his hand through her surprisingly smooth hair and smiled back.

"Shepard… I wanted to tell you something last night…" Tali started.

"Mordin told me… Don't worry…" Shepard said.

Tali could never figure out how Shepard could read her mind, and by now she accepted it without surprise.

"You always seem to know what I'm thinking…" Tali whispered to him.

"Do I? Hmm? I've never noticed…" Shepard said innocently.

Tali nudged him in the side and laughed. Shepard grabbed her by her shoulders and tossed her to the other side of the bed. He stared into her eyes without blinking. Tali stared too. Their eyes slowly closed as they neared each other for another kiss, but a loud knock on the door broke them from the trance. Shepard closed his eyes angrily and turned to the door.

"Yes! What is it!" Shepard yelled.

"I came to tell you the ship is ready to depart whenever you are ready…" came Garrus's voice.

"Okay! I'll be right out!" Shepard answered.

"Have you seen Tali! She isn't in her room!" Garrus yelled through the door.

Shepard looked over into Tali's eyes and back to the door. "She's in here!"

Shepard listened to Garrus walk away from the door without a word. He nearly laughed, as did Tali, at Garrus's reaction.

"Well… we better get ready…" Shepard said, stretching his back.

"Have you seen my suit?" Tali asked looking around the room.

"No, I haven't." Shepard said scratching his head.

"Why not? You took it off!" Tali yelled happily.

"Did I?" Shepard asked. "Must have slipped my memory…" He smiled slyly.

Tali became wide eyed and dropped her mouth at him. She threw the closest pillow by her at him.

"Where's my suit, Shepard?" Tali asked again.

"Calling me Shepard again…" Shepard chuckled.

"John…" Tali said irritatingly.

"It's under the bed…" Shepard said, slipping on some pants.

Tali reached under and pulled out her suit and her helmet. She sighed at it, but she preferred to be in the suit than be seen by other people.

"So what are we going to do today?" Tali asked.

"We are…" Shepard struggled with one of his boots. "…going to Illium to have a talk with Liara… It must be urgent if she had Krog track me down." Shepard said.

"Krog…" Tali shivered. "I don't ever want to see that Krogan again…"

"I know… but he will probably be at Liara's side now…" Shepard said.

"Keelah…" Tali said as the clicked the visor back onto her helmet, hiding her face from the world again.


	39. Chapter 39: Routine

Shepard and Tali walked aboard the Normandy. Tali could feel those smiles and stares which caused her face to burn and her head to fall as she hurried to the elevator. Shepard grabbed her arm and gave her one final hug before she took off for the elevator again. Shepard looked around at the crew who were watching her as she ran into the elevator. He slammed his fist on the top of the panel which drove all of them to look at him. He looked back at Tali who gave him a small wave before the door closed.

"I would like to know why you were staring at her like that…" Shepard asked.

The crew sat quietly, avoiding Shepard's piercing, demanding gaze.

"Well? Is any of you going to answer me?" Shepard asked again, sweeping his vision across the heads of the crew. One rose slowly.

"Sir… I mean… Commander… We were only… looking… at her…" one of the new crew members said. The other crew members looked at each other nervously.

"You were simply looking at her?" Shepard asked, walking slowly towards the nervous crewman.

"Yes commander!" he said in a nervous tone.

Shepard fumbled around with a pen before he looked up at the nervous crewman. He immediately shot his gaze away from him and looked at his feet.

"Is that what you were really doing? You weren't pestering my wife were you?" Shepard asked, menacingly.

The crewman started shaking more. "Yes! Yes we were pestering her! All of us!" The crewman sputtered.

Shepard stared at him and back around at the other crew members who had tensed up.

"What's your name?" Shepard asked, pulling out his data pad.

The crewman looked down nervously at the data pad. "E-Eric Grech…" he answered.

"Eric Grech? Interesting name… You are being promoted to the engine room." Shepard said, making a few touches on his pad.

"Wh-what?!" the crewman asked, losing his balance.

"You heard me. Your record shows that you were an engineer. I want you to learn from the best." Shepard leaned in close and whispered. "That would be my wife by the way…"

Eric's face turned red when he heard that. He stood motionless with his mouth slightly dropped.

"Wh-why…" Eric started…

"You showed bravery unlike your other crewmates! I love your bravery, and I hope that others will follow your example!" Shepard said, placing his hand on the back of Eric's back, guiding him to the elevator.

They both entered the elevator though to Eric it was all a blur. The next thing he remembered was looking at a quarian sizing him up. He stared at her for only a second, but immediately diverted his gaze remembering what Shepard had just scolded the crew about.

"Shepard told me to train you… I guess I will train you then, but you better keep up. I don't like slow Bosh'tets slowing me down…" Tali said turning back to her panel.

Eric walked over to the side of the panel to watch her. Tali quickly flipped through almost a dozen panels and graphs. Numbers flew past her hands as a million bits of code were quickly calibrated and sorted by the quick movements of her hands. She stopped and turned to him.

"Now you try…" Tali said.

Eric looked at the panel and Tali. "How do you expect me to go that fast from just watching you?" Eric asked in disbelief.

Tali groaned slowly as she turned to Shepard who was watching with an amused look on his face in the door.

"Shepard…" Tali pleaded. "Why are you doing this to me?"

"You need to work on your leadership skills… especially if they make you an Admiral." Shepard said with a smile.

"So you heard that… I don't think I'm Admiral material…" Tali said.

"Nonsense! With my help, you will be Admiral material in no time!" Shepard said cheerfully. "I'll be on the deck!"

Tali opened her mouth to protest, but Shepard had already left. She turned back to her clueless apprentice and sighed. _Why me?_

* * *

Shepard had made his way back to the bridge. He was about to disengage the airlocks to the ship when a familiar face… err… person came aboard with a travel bag.

"Kal'Reegar?" Shepard asked.

"Awaiting orders Commander!" Kal said, dropping his bag.

"At ease… What are you doing here?" Shepard asked.

"I was asked to serve on your ship… transferred." Kal answered.

"Very well!" Shepard said happily. "You can help Jacob in the Armory!"

"Yes sir!" Kal said obediently.

"Please, Kal… just call me commander…" Shepard said.

"Yes… Commander." Kal said happily.

"The armory is on the room to the right." Shepard said pointing to the right door.

"Aye, aye Commander!" Kal said as he took his bag into the armory.

Shepard was quite pleased with having Kal aboard the Normandy. He walked back to his private computer and scanned the messages to find a message from the Admiralty Board.

_-Shepard. Through your and Tali's services to the quarian people we have agreed to help in your fight against the Reapers when the time arises. We will be ready for your call, but do not expect to have direct control over us. We are still a sovereign race with our own captains and commanders. If you have any helpful data to defeat the Reapers, please send them to us so that we may prepare to arm ourselves for the fight. Thank-you for giving us back our spirits._

_Admiralty Board_

_P.S. Take care of Tali…_

Shepard read the message a second time through just to make sure he had read it correctly. He chuckled with joy as he realized that he had just received the alliance of the largest fleet in the galaxy though he would still have to pull a few ears to get a stronger alliance with them. Shepard flipped through the other messages looking for anything that was important. He found a message from Liara, but the date showed that it was ancient. He decided that he would simply go talk to her instead. He plotted a course for Illium.

* * *

Liara sat uncomfortably in her chair. She wanted Shepard now! She had just received valuable, life threatening data from a member of the shadow broker, and she wasn't going to let a delay in her action be the death of him. She tapped her fingers melodically on her desk. Tap, tap, tap. Tap, tap, tap. The noise started to annoy her as everything else that day appeared to be doing. She stared up at the sky, into the dark void of space. She wanted to see that familiar ship fly overhead and dock, but she saw nothing.

"He is coming…" came Krog's voice from the door.

Liara looked over at the large Krogan who was leaning against the side of the door tapping his fingers together. She never could understand how that Krogan could be so sneaky.

"How long ago did he say?" Liara asked.

"I would say that he will be here within three hours." Krog answered.

"Good… good…" Liara said tapping her fingers together. She leaned back in her chair to regard the darkness of space again. "So how was the wedding?" Liara asked.

"It was interesting…" Krog said, uninterestedly.

"I see…" Liara said, completely ignoring the tone in Krog's voice.

"May I leave?" Krog asked.

"Yes… my secretary will give you your pay… You may leave if you wish…" Liara said.

Krog hesitated, but forced himself to turn. The secretary transferred the ten million credits to Krog's unlimited credit supply and wished him a safe voyage. Krog didn't feel like punching her in the face. He didn't feel like killing anything until he figured out what was wrong with his brain. He looked over at a small poster that advertised an arena like battle. _Maybe a battle will clear my head._ Krog agreed to fight, but killing still seemed out of the question.

Liara sat on her chair and fiddled with the controls of her computer. Business had been slow, yet her mind was more occupied than it had been in awhile. She stared at the hideous picture of the scarred and shattered man on the computer screen. She knew that it was impossible for this man to be alive, yet there he was with that broken tooth snarl and cybernetic implants.

* * *

Tali stared at Eric as he passed through the code at novice speed, though she was impressed that he had reached the novice speed on his second try.

"Good job Eric… Just keep doing that…" Tali said as she walked to the catwalk to get to the drive core.

She walked over to the colossal sphere that gave a perfectly curved reflection of Tali on its side. She leaned against the railing and looked at herself in that glorious machine. The edge heat emitters glowed with a soothing warm light that was quickly dissipated by the outer heat sinks in the spherical room. She wanted to take this magnificent machine apart and see its inner workings just as she had done with anything else, but she knew that this was always going to be a mystery to her. Just like how Shepard thought about things.

She looked at the ring on her finger in the reflection. She looked down at her hands that firmly gripped the railing. One hand had the quarian bond still wrapped around it, while the other hand had the ring. She savored the feeling of the pressure that each placed on her hands. To most it would be uncomfortable, but to her, she could feel the soothing love and attraction of Shepard in those accessories. She closed her eyes and breathed out. A small jolt in the engine broke Tali's meditation as she returned to her pupil.

"What are you doing Bosh'tet!" She yelled.

"They started the ship… Ma'am…" Eric yelled as he thumbed his way through the panels trying to set the right power and transfer rates. Tali was impressed how he started grasping concepts that she had yet to teach him, but she still acting like he was doing everything wrong.

"Step back!" Tali commanded as she resumed her place and fast pace at her panel with Eric closely watching.

The ship began its journey to the mass relay that sat out in space. The slight blue glow of the large structure shimmered dimly at the distance that they were away from it, but it still could be recognized through the large black sheet with holes in it. Shepard took a breath as he considered the possibilities of his summoning to Liara especially since she had used Krog to track him down. The mystery began to consume Shepard's thoughts, but he tried not to dwell on the issue. He attempted to flood his head with how he was going to gain the alliances of the rest of the galaxy to fight the Reapers.

Shepard's mind began to process the large amount of work that he still had to complete to prepare the galaxy for the large battle. He looked over the galaxy map as they flew towards the mass relay. He began to plot his course and set up a set of actions to bring the galaxy together. Someone will have to try to listen to him and follow his lead, but the ideas of the large amount of mercenary groups who all equally hated him seemed like a long shot.

There was no immediate solution to the mercenary alliance so Shepard focused more on the other alliances that he needed. He rubbed his eyes at the large task in front of him again, but rejoiced enough to remove the risk of gaining a headache. He had gained the alliance of the Migrant Fleet, one of the most largest fleets in the galaxy. He had that going for him which was, in Shepard's opinion, going to be the hardest to convince. He also assumed that he had the support of the geth, but he was going to have to confirm that with Legion.

He walked into the elevator and pressed the '1' button. The large doors whooshed open in Shepard's room. He walked over to his couch and took a small nap. He was going to have a long day tomorrow though Shepard felt that it was just going to be like any other day. Life-threatening and dangerous. Shepard chuckled to himself as he looked at the sheer unluckiness that he had faced over that past couple of weeks. He looked at himself in the reelection of a shiny metal spoon that he had placed on the table. The large dark lines under his eyes showed his exhaustion and Shepard decided to sleep a few hours off of that debt that had accumulated.


	40. Chapter 40: A Friend Is Endangered

Krog had left, and the balcony became irritatingly quiet. Liara started tapping her fingers against her desk again, but the sound wanted her to rip her ears off. She tried to flip through some more data on the subject in front of her, but nothing seemed to be known about him, or at least, nothing that she could get her hands on yet. The three blinking letters on the right of the picture were even more mysterious. K.I.A. She knew this was impossible because the picture that she had updated for the profile was newer than the death date.

The large sound of a landing ship filled the air causing Liara to look up quickly. The familiar shape of the Normandy slowly landed in the designated parking spot that she had bought for them. Just the sight that he was here drove Liara to become so impatient that she began to pace quickly around her balcony waiting for Shepard to arrive.

She heard her secretary's voice on the other side of the door. She quickly took her seat and composed herself. Shepard walked in followed closely by Tali and Garrus.

"What do you want Liara?" Shepard asked in a less than pleasant tone.

"Why are you mad at me?" Liara asked.

"Mad at you? I'm just curious why you sent a psychopathic, mercenary, murdering, krogan!" Shepard yelled.

"He was already tracking you… I got to him first… to spare you." Liara said.

Shepard stared at her long, but he could not hold her accountable for her actions. Krog had not killed him, nor had he disrupted the ritual so he had really nothing to be mad about. Shepard took a deep breath in and released it.

"What do you need?" Shepard asked calmly.

"I don't need anything… I found something that you would be interested in Shepard." Liara answered.

"What did you find?" Shepard asked, holding the bridge of his nose.

"Vido is alive…" Liara said.

"What!" Shepard asked.

"He reemerged, but only briefly. My sources told me that you had killed him, but it appears that they were wrong or mislead." Liara explained.

"Where is he?" Shepard asked.

"I don't know Shepard…" Liara responded.

"Then why am I here?" Shepard demanded.

"Because he sent you a message through me! I haven't looked at it… Here…" Liara said as she handed the data pad to Shepard.

"Hello Shepard…" The VI started. "It's been a long time, a long time to rebuild…" the face on the hologram laughed a broken grin. "As you see Shepard… I am not dead. I have to say… You did quite a number on my face and my plans, but that will change. Before, I hoped to have you surrender under the bluff of having all of the mercenary groups working together, but now I see that your not the one to surrender. I won't tell you where I am Shepard… You are going to have to find me… or else I will kill all that you love. First the quarian, then the turian, then your precious ship…" Vido said, laughing a mixture of voice and robotic noises from his heavily rebuilt head.

Shepard leaned back as the hologram closed. He looked over at Tali giving her a concerned look before looking at Garrus and sharing the same look with him. Finally he turned back to Liara and struggled to find the right words to say to her.

"Thank-you Liara…" was all that he could say at that moment.

Shepard was not in the mood to have a nemesis of his return from the grave and threaten his life, not now! He started to walk to the door of Liara's balcony when a high intensity thermal round grazed his side and hit the wall in front of him. He turned in time to see that the shot was not meant for him, but an unfortunate Asari friend of his. He watched her fall onto her desk and try to hold herself up, but she quickly slid off leaving a trail of blood on the top.

Shepard immediately jumped up, and , disregarding the sniper, sprinted to her side. Her breathing was shallow and the wound bled profusely.

"Liara! Liara! Please, please hold on!" Shepard yelled to her, gripping her hand tightly.

He quickly added the medi-gel from his pack onto the wound. The bleeding immediately stopped, but her chances of survival were now completely up to Liara's will to survive. Her breathing was still ragged as she tried to take in as much air as she could. Tali and Garrus stood around Shepard not knowing what to do. Their friend was dying and all they could do was watch.

"Sh-sh-Shepard…" Liara said trying to catch her breath. The tears welled up in her eyes as she looked into Shepard's eyes. He pulled her up more so that she could be closer to him.

"What is it Liara?…" Shepard asked.

She tried to laugh at her thoughts, but coughed some blood out onto her lip instead. "I always wanted t-t-to t-t-tell you something…" Liara said.

"Don't tell me now… Tell me when your better…." Shepard said, trying to fight back the tears.

"I w-wanted to t-tell you that I…" She started, but her words were quickly drowned out by an overhead medi-cab landing quickly on the balcony.

Tali and Garrus stepped to the side as the emergency response team quickly started wrapping her in medical tape and plastering her in medi-gel.

"Pick-up to base! We have her, but she's in critical condition!" the man looked at Liara who struggled to take another breath. "She might not make it to the hospital, over…" one of the paramedics said.

The words tore a hole in Shepard's heart. Had he caused this to happen? If he didn't come, would Liara be strapped to a gurney heading to the hospital, or worse, the morgue?

Tali saw the anguish in Shepard's eyes. She could hear the questions that were swimming in his complicated mind. She walked over to him as he stood to watch them load Liara into the cab. The sparkling streams down Shepard's face made it hard for Tali to continue.

"You couldn't have known this would happen Shepard… It's not your fault…" Tali said, wrapping her arms around him.

"I know, but it still feels like it's my fault…" Shepard said as he watched the cab fly away.

Garrus scanned the area that the shop could have came from, but the chaos and rush of Illium proved that finding the shooter would be impossible. Shepard looked down at the data pad with Vido's face on it, playing that infernal, robotic laughing over and over again in a pool of blood. The anger in Shepard grew beyond all measure and bound.

"Vido will have wished that he was dead…" Shepard said angrily.

"Shepard…" Tali said with concern as Shepard stormed out of the door.

She threw a glance at Garrus motioned for them to follow. Shepard had already made it halfway to the ship before they caught up to him.

"Shepard! Please!" Tali yelled trying to hold him back.

Shepard yanked his arm from her grip as the rage fueled him to proceed. The bloody data pad was still in his hands, an encrypted coordinate system was displayed in the broken smile of the VI.

"Shepard! No! Don't you see? It's a trap! Another trap!" Tali screamed trying to hold him back again.

Shepard yanked his arm out from her again. Tali looked at Garrus for him to help. She saw that Garrus was afraid to even touch Shepard in this state like he was going to kill anyone who got in his way.

"Garrus…" Tali whispered. "Say something!"

"Shepard…" Garrus started.

"I don't want to hear it!" Shepard said as he punched the access code to the ship.

"Shepard look at yourself!" Tali screamed.

Shepard stopped dead in his tracks. He stared around the ground where he stood. Garrus and Tali didn't know what to do. Shepard was either seeing reason or going to leave them on Illium so that he could go on the suicide mission himself. Shepard reached u and grabbed the bridge of his nose. He shook his head before turning to look at Tali.

"When I saw her laying there… bleeding… barely breathing… and the threat that Vido made I… I saw you laying there in a pool of blood! In my hands, gasping for life as a maniacal laugh of a madman echoed in the halls." Shepard said, his body beginning to shake with anguish. "I don't want to see that!"

Tali embraced Shepard because that is all she knew that she could do at that moment.

"Liara needs you…" Tali said.

"She will be here when I get back…" Shepard reasoned.

"Then you should go before you leave…" Tali said.

Shepard took a few breaths in as he thought about his options.

"John… Please…" Tali said again.

The sound of someone referring to him by his first name dove him back to his rough childhood. He had left someone he loved to die. He had convinced himself that they would be there when he returned, but they weren't. Shepard closed his eyes as he cleared the blind anger from his system revealing his calculating commander self again.

"Alright… I'll go see her…" Shepard said.

They all walked to the hospital though Shepard walked slower than he had ever walked in his life; he was either afraid of what was awaiting at the hospital or he was nervous seeing Liara in such a weakened state. Either way, they had made it to the hospital, and Shepard had asked the nurse where Liara T'Soni was.

"She is currently in the critical condition wing…" the nurse said, nonchalantly.

Shepard broke off from the counter and immediately ran down the wings to the critical wing. He caught sight of the gurney that was still transporting her to her room. He quickly ran up to the people and grabbed Liara's hand. She looked at him with eyes that appeared to not see him. She must have been drifting in and out of consciousness when he had reached her.

"Hold on Liara! I will kill whoever did this to you! I promise!" Shepard told her.

Her only response was a single tear down her cheek and a few nods as her lungs began to burn from the strain of the oxygen flow. Shepard watched as they rounded a corner out of view. Garrus and Tali were on each side of him as he turned around.

"Come on… We have to go visit an old friend…" Shepard said.

* * *

Krog managed to kill two mercenaries with his bare hands before anyone had even realized he was there. The gunshots and spray of the bullets easily ricocheted off of Krog's enhanced shielding. The sight was amusing to say the least, but Krog didn't feel that same jolt of energy that he always took from such fights. The sound of two mercenary's heads breaking into each other was music to Krog's ears before, but now it was simply a sound. The anger and irritation of the lack of fun only drove Krog to kill the mercenaries in more stylized ways, but it changed nothing.

The bodies of over a dozen mercenaries stood at his feet with not a single scratch on him. He found it pitiful that even at such odds that they could not touch him, yet a single human and quarian who had been lost in a jungle for almost three days had almost killed him and they still weren't dead. Krog felt like it was a crime against the galaxy for such an event to unfold. He wanted to kill himself for letting them take advantage of him.

He punched the stone wall in front him, instantly shattering a large hole through it though there was no marks on his calloused, ungloved hands. He blew the dust off of his hand, but the throb of the pain wasn't enough to break his mind off of Shepard. He wanted to feel that neck in his hands. He wanted to see the life drain from Shepard's eyes as he held him above the ground. He wanted to fell the weak kicks of Shepard as he struggled for life and the soft punches of his quarian wife beating his back.

The quarian… He had almost forgot about that gem. She had proven herself as an equal to Shepard which drove his lust to kill her as powerful as he wanted to kill Shepard. He could see her, unmasked and covered in traditional quarian clothes. She was strong enough to live outside of her suit which only drove Krog to despise her more. The respect for them remained strong, but the overwhelming hatred began to take over.

"I can't have fun until those two are dead!" Krog roared to himself in the field of dead bodies.

He trudged away from the massacre to his ship. He wanted nothing more than to see Shepard die at his hands. He wanted him to die slowly. He wanted to see him die. The want for Shepard's death was simply intoxicating. He did not know when he had boarded his ship, nor did he know when his ship had reached space. He tapped his fingers on the side of the soft leather seat of his ship. The flight to Shepard irritated him deeply. He simply wanted Shepard dead.


	41. Chapter 41: Into the Rabbit's Hole

Revenge became Shepard's only motivation during that long flight to the secret set coordinates, but thanks to Garrus and Tali, he had planned for any traps that may lurk at those coordinates. He silently stood at the top of the galaxy map platform. He stood staring, not at the map, but something that his mind was projecting on the back of his eyes. He could see Liara laying on the ground, the blood, the shallow breathing. He could feel the warmth of her blood on his hands from the hole in her back, and how close he had come to being hit as well.

The crew sat silently as the atmosphere of the deck could physically be felt from Shepard's irradiating influence. The ship flew silently through the darkness of space without a sound. The crackle of the intercom broke Shepard from his trance.

"We are at the coordinates Commander…" Joker said respectfully. "You might want to see this…"

Shepard walked from the platform and briskly down the hallway to the helm. From out of the front visual port, Shepard could see the faint outline of a dark planet.

"Where are we?" Shepard asked.

"We are somewhere between the junctions of no where and nothing…" Joker joked.

"So it's not in a major star system?" Shepard asked, avoiding the joke.

"This is the only planet around that faint star…" Joker responded.

Shepard stared hard at the planet expecting to see the dark shape of Vido run out from the darkness.

"Get Tali and Zaeed up here…" Shepard said as he started to walk away.

He could here Joker's voice being broadcasted from the helm around the ship. He also thought he could hear the footsteps of Zaeed and Tali entering the elevator to see him on the bridge.

The door opened to the elevator revealing Tali, who appeared to be nervous and jumpy, and Zaeed, who stood calmly with his hands behind his back. He regarded the two for a second before he started to doubt his decision. He didn't want to endanger Tali since she was next on the list to be killed, but he needed her, not only for her technical support, but for her to keep him calm and focused. Zaeed was another story. Shepard still didn't trust the gung-ho mercenary, or if it was wise to bring him to kill Vido, but he felt like he had to give this to him.

Shepard sighed as he accepted the facts. "Tali… Zaeed… We are going to go down to that planet. We are going to find Vido, and we are going to subdue him if we can, but if we can't…" Shepard looked at Zaeed. "Then we will have no choice, but to kill him." Zaeed nodded with satisfaction at that promise. "Now I want you both to keep a close eye out for traps and any other things that would either cause harm to yourselves or anyone else on this mission. I don't know what's down there, but we are going to find out." Shepard said.

"Shepard…" Tali rubbed the back of her head and shuffled her feet. "Maybe I shouldn't go…" Tali said.

"I know why you would wish to stay, but right now I need you…" Shepard said, staring long into Tali's eyes. She responded with a small quick nod. "Okay… lets move out…"

Krog's instruments pointed out into the darkness of space. There was nothing out there, yet the tracer that was on the Normandy clearly pointed out in that direction. He thought maybe the tracer had slipped and was now simply floating in space, but the quick course change and velocity eliminated that theory. Krog flipped all of the power to the engines and blasted in a straight line to his target. He stood angrily out from his ship; he squeezed his hands into the leather till it was about to rupture, but he stopped just short of ruining his chair.

"Here I come Shepard… and you too Tali'Zorah…" Krog said to himself over the large rattle of his engine.

It only took him half an hour to reach the dark, forgotten planet, but that half an hour put him at least an hour behind Shepard who was now on the planet. Krog quickly scanned the planet and found a small base with the heat signature that Krog easily recognized as a shuttle. He set in the course to his autopilot and began to suit up with every piece of equipment that he owned. He grabbed his custom built Krogan shotgun, his own custom built grenades, his shield generators, and the cloaking field belt.

He turned away from the large assortment of weapons and blades, but stopped when he remembered something. He turned back around and moved the few pieces of explosives off of a locked, encrypted box. With perfect memory, Krog punched the code into the panel and the vacuum seals hissed open. A large spiked metal glove rose from the cold storage and hovered off of its pedestal. Krog grabbed it and felt the ominous power that flowed through this strange glove. He slid off his own gauntlet and slipped the new one on.

He tested the stretching capabilities of it a few times before he fully accepted the strange glove. He smiled as he felt his body become lighter. He walked over to one of the walls of the ship and walked up it with ease. Once on the roof of his ship, he jumped up making a full turn bringing himself down on the floor again in a crouched position. He stood up and looked at the magnificent glove and laughed. He would have to test it more once he landed on the planet.

Shepard, Tali, and Zaeed walked slowly off of the shuttle. The flashlights that hung to their armor, gave a hallway of light into the dark outline of a rather small complex. Shepard looked around the dark wasteland of the planet and at the small soot-like dust that was falling everywhere. They walked to the door of the complex and stood at it's threshold. Shepard motioned for Tali to check the door controls for anything out of the ordinary in which she found three large incendiary bombs triggered from the activation of the door.

"Burglar alarm… interesting." Zaeed said.

They passed into the dark corridor to the complex, guns out, eyes open. Shepard didn't want to be trapped in this place like he was in the last complex so he had Tali and Zaeed scan the walls and ceiling for any detonation triggers or charges. The trail of blood on the floor seemed amazingly familiar though the age of the blood was much older. They followed the blood to the body of a young Asari who had been beaten and dragged to this spot. She was clearly dead, but the thought sent shivers down Shepard's spine. He checked around the body for any clues as he scanned the walls, ceiling, and body for any bombs, but they were clean.

Shepard also found that instead of a corner leading down a singe hallway, it branched off into two halls. Shepard looked at the wall above the dead Asari to find a message in blood with his name on it.

"Which way… Which way will you take, Shepard?"

Shepard looked down at both of the impossible dark hallways. Each one appeared to be equally unpleasant, and each hallway appeared to be a bridge that broke at the edge of oblivion. Shepard looked down the left and motioned for his team to follow. The farther they traveled down the left hallway the more the trickle of water was heard. Halfway down the hall, plumbing jutted from the ceiling and followed the hallway down to the corner.

One of the pipes had a loose valve that caused the water to drip into a small eroded hole that was filled with the mixture of the water and a slightly luminescent lily. Tali looked down at the unique plant and almost said something, but a noise down the next hall caused them to raise their guns up and point down the impossibly dark void. Everyone stood in silence with only the dripping from the leaking pipe dripping behind them. A small space rat scurried out into the light and ran past them. Tali lowered her gun slightly thinking that had made the noise, but Zaeed and Shepard kept their eyes transfixed on the darkness.

A large, deafening roar filled the air. The roar caused an electrical disturbance or some EMP had been triggered sending their flashlights to the darkness of the hall. They stood in the darkness while Zaeed and Shepard quickly cracked a few glow sticks on. The soft green light gave them a claustrophobic feel as the darkness was only a few feet from them. Zaeed pulled the flamethrower off of his back and lit the pilot light. The warm glow of the orange light combined with the green glow of the sticks generated a calming hue, but the situation drove all sense of calm away. They strained to listen harder into the darkness, but it did not speak to them again.

Shepard inched his head over to Zaeed while keeping his eyes on the darkness.

"Do you?…" Shepard started to whisper.

Suddenly a menagerie of red glowing eyes opened in the darkness and stared at what appeared to be all of them at once. Zaeed quickly blasted a stream at the eyes only to find a large red eyed spider staring at him. The shock of the hideous creature was only the first of many. When the spider opened its mouth, it revealed a mouth that didn't just have large fangs, but an arcing stream of electrical current. It let out another blood curdling scream which sent an invisible wall of EMP crashing into them.

Zaeed let rip another blast from his flamethrower as Tali fired her shotgun at the beast. Only the flames reached the giant spider while the spider curved harmlessly around it. The spider squealed as the biting flames bit and grabbed at the spider's strong exoskeleton. It quickly backed itself up to the wall and jumped up a large hole in the roof. They listened as it moved down the ventilation to some other area of the complex.

They breathed heavily as they stood completely still waiting for something, another, or nothing. They did not care anymore about what they were waiting for. Shepard looked over at Zaeed and nodded for him to proceed since he was the only person with a weapon capable of hurting, or at least scaring it. The fear of the strange mutated spiders only made the darkness become more confining.

Shepard and Tali closed the gap between themselves and Zaeed as he scanned the hole to the ventilation shaft. He looked to each side of the hole expecting something to jump out at him, but the hallway remained quiet. They brought their focus back to the staircase that lowered the room down enough for it to be hidden under the sand of the surface, concealing the true size of the complex.

Shepard and Tali kept their pistols and knives at the ready as they guarded Zaeed's rear. The soft footfalls on the stairs echoed and amplified down the staircase.

"Door…" Zaeed whispered as they reached the bottom of the steps.

Shepard patted Tali's back sending her and Zaeed into a smooth switch. Now Shepard and Zaeed stood guard while Tali examined the intricate door lock. After the three incendiary bombs were disarmed from the door she made quick work of the bypass which caused the door to instantly and automatically fly open revealing a bright flood of light. The happiness of escaping the dark was quickly killed off from a hail of bullets raining down on the door way. Tali managed to stand and run behind one of the sides of the doors just as the bullets disintegrated the floor where she had just stood.

"Shepard!" Tali yelled as the bullets began to bite away the wall that she was hiding behind.

Shepard and Zaeed pulled their assault rifles from their backs and charged into the room grabbing any cover they could find as they unloaded into the large row of mercenary thugs that ranged from all of the mercenary groups. Blue Sun Mercs fired the constant stream of bullets as a small pocket of Eclipse Mercs created combat drones to flank the small landing party. This could all have been simple for Shepard, Zaeed, and Tali to handle, but the large charge of Vorcha made a standing battle almost impossible.

Krog walked into the open door of the dark complex. He walked down the dark corridor with his shotgun aimed in front of him and his night vision goggles on. He could see a body laying on the floor at the end of the hallway which appeared to be that of Liara's. A small emotional burn grew in him, but quickly faded when he saw that it wasn't her. He looked up at the message on the wall. He looked both left and right and back at the wall. He could hear gunfire, but appeared to be coming from both hallways. Krog sighed as he started to walk down the left corridor, but a small scurrying noise behind him caused him to turn back down to the right.

He began a charge down the hall to the dark figure that had just ran behind the wall.

"Shepard!" Krog yelled as he ran around the corner.

A large spider was waiting for him on the other side of the corner. Krog didn't even miss a beat at that strange sight as he brought his gloved hand down on the creatures head before it could give out its blood curdling scream. The glove instantly sent a pulse of gravitational energy down into the poor creature's skull causing its brain to instantly turn to mush and its hardened skull to instantly erupt. The whole front end of the spider exploded in a blue gore explosion as its legs instantly began to twitch with the residual sparks of the brain before it had been forcefully ejected. Krog wiped the blood from his face as he listened to the noises in the hallway. The gunshots were just down the stairs. He could bet his life on that. He ran quickly down the steps and punched the door to the next room with the glove hand. The people on the other side didn't even stand a chance.


	42. Chapter 42: The Dark Corridors

To say the least, Krog enjoyed himself with his new glove. The door that he had smashed was sent smashing into the other wall killing two unlucky mercenaries. The rest of the mercenaries were so scattered by this impossible and unimaginable turn of events that they barely had time to take cover before Krog had already charged halfway to them. One managed to scream before his body was smashed into the wall breaking his back instantly. The others tried to shoot at the crazed Krogan, but the bullets appeared to curve around him and hit the mercenaries behind him. Krog smiled as they desperately tried to shoot him.

He punched one of the crates in front of him sending it smashing into the mercenaries on one side of him, pinning them against the wall. Their screams of agony filled the air as their legs were hopelessly smashed against the wall and the crate. Their screams quickly died when another crate was sent smashing the top of them. Krog began to feel his old self again. He figured that was because of Shepard being somewhere in this hellhole.

Krog's attention then focused on the other group of mercenaries that fired helplessly at him, but the shocked looked on their faces showed that they were on the brink of running, and Krog would not allow such an easy escape. He turned and punched his hand into the ground slightly angled in the direction of the mercenaries. The floor instantly ripped up and created a wave of concrete and metal smashing towards them. Krog could only hear the muffled scream before the wall of stone smashed its victims. He looked at his glove and kissed it before he smashed the next door open.

* * *

Shepard, Tali, and Zaeed were helplessly pinned behind their miniscule cover waiting for a break in the fire, but it remained continuous as they were forced to defend against the onslaught of combat drones. Out of a shear fluke of divine intervention, the base rumbled slightly and the lights flickered which brought a break in the shooting. Zaeed and Shepard were not going to waste this opportunity so they both rose and began taking aim.

Zaeed strafed right and Shepard left while Tali took aim of any survivors. Zaeed easily sent round after round into the heads of the mercenaries who tried to hide behind their cover, but at least six were killed before the remaining three could hide. Shepard had also cleared a large portion of the left side of the room, killing at least five and wounding three others.

Zaeed popped the clips off of his thermal grenades and tossed them at the far end of the room. The mercenaries quickly stood up to run, but the accurate and powerful shots of Tali quickly brought them down. Any survivors were quickly consumed by a large plume of fire. The soft crackle of the fire on the other room and the silence that followed, confirmed that the room had been cleared of enemies. Shepard and Zaeed looked at each other.

"What the hell happened back there?" Zaeed asked, mentioning the shaking of the base and the light flicker.

"I don't know, but we better be happy that this place has faulty wiring…" Shepard said wiping the sweat from his brow.

Tali walked over to the group and looked around at the destroyed room. She didn't enjoy how close that they had come to death, but the curiosity of the power flicker seemed too convenient.

"It could be a trap Shepard…" Tali said looking around the room.

"I wouldn't pass that off… Vido would use all of his men as a shield or distraction to get what he wants…" Zaeed said while he examined a large hole where his head was on the box.

"Let's go…" Shepard commanded.

They walked to the other side of the room to find the assortment of charred corpses, bent and twisted as the heat had cooked their bodies. The bodies were, in the eyes of Zaeed, simply skeletons with crusty tendons connecting them. Shepard felt pity for them as he walked past as did Tali who averted her eyes from the scene. The next door was quickly hacked, and they returned to a dark, damp hallway. The dripping water returned and Zaeed's flamethrower was out again.

The flame flickered dark, dancing shadows on the wall. They danced a ballet of death and torture as the walls slowly dissolved into rough rock faces that stared at the three unwelcome guests and bent the shadow sirens into bent old women. The Sisters of Fate? Perhaps. The hallway began to slope down deeper into the ground, deeper into hell. Shepard took a deep breath in to taste the ever growing dampness of this cave. Zaeed also smelled the air and grimaced at the smell of mold and humidity. Tali walked like normal with no impact on her breathing.

The sloping path began to level out. A small rumble that sent dust and rocks from the unsupported roof made them instantly stop and get ready to run.

"What the hell is happening in this place!" Zaeed yelled.

"I don't know!" Shepard yelled over the rumble.

"I'm getting seismic readings from a point on the other side of the complex!" Tali yelled as she flipped through as much data in her Omni-tool as she could.

"Could it cause a collapse!" Shepard yelled as the rumble stopped.

They looked around the small hole that they were standing in expecting some noise or answer to their questions, but everything simply became still again. Tali looked over at Shepard and back at her Omni-tool.

"No… the structural integrity of the stone should be enough to hold this place up. Only an explosion or severe seismic shift would be able to destroy this place, but it would have to be far greater than what we just felt." Tali explained to the dismay of Zaeed and Shepard.

* * *

Krog walked through the dark hallways of this ridiculous base. The smell of dampness only wanted him to smash stuff more with his new toy, but the room was quiet. He jogged down one of the small sloping gradients to where it quickly leveled out again and looked around. There was still nothing.

"Do you call this a trap for Shepard!" Krog yelled into the darkness.

Almost like a response to his question, the walls started to move with dark shadows. Krog squinted at the strange darkness that was moving towards him. For the first time he did not know what to expect which threw him off guard. The dark shadows quickly came closer unto Krog could see that it was millions of spiders. Each one was around six inches long and they all had fangs that could pierce most armor. Krog pulled out his shotgun and clipped the chain of shells into the custom built feeding bay. He fired a round that blew a two foot crater into the ground causing many of the spiders to be killed instantly.

Krog smiled, but that smile quickly faded as the hole quickly repaired itself with the continuous stream of spiders. He began to fire faster and faster at the fast approaching spiders, but their ranks were faster to regain than what he was killing. Round after round, crater after crater, yet the spiders marched on.

Krog looked around at the rock face and the walls around him. He shrugged his shoulders as he clipped the shotgun onto his back and charged through the spiders. Most were crushed under his mighty feet, but a few from the ceiling managed to land on him and bite furiously at his armor. Krog quickly smashed them with his left hand, making sure not to use his right for any reason. The endless row of spiders quickly dissipated allowing Krog to do what he had planned. He turned sharply and smashed his fist back into the ground sending a seismic shockwave into the tunnel.

Almost simultaneously the floor shot up to meet the collapsing ceiling. The spiders squealed as the crushing force of the dual collapse broke their fragile exoskeletons. Krog quickly turned around again and ran as the collapse began to spread farther down his cave. He listened to his footfalls on the rock match harmoniously with the rumble from the falling rock behind him. He could only laugh at this game, but the sudden change in sound of his feet caught him off guard. All of a sudden, he was standing in a small metal alcove that led to a large, armored, vault door. Krog watched as his cave was destroyed.

"The only way to go now is forward…" Krog said as he wiped dust from his face. "You better be waiting for me Shepard because there is no escape now…"

* * *

Zaeed took point as Tali and Shepard walked in the back. They kept their guns trained to the blackness behind them, but they started to talk to pass the time.

"John?" Tali asked.

"What?" Shepard asked, though being called by his first name still felt new.

"Why did you take me for real?" Tali asked, throwing him a glance.

"Because you were the only thing tethering me to sanity." Shepard explained.

"No not this… when you married me… twice…" Tali corrected.

"What do you mean? I have told you the reasons that I married you!" Shepard said. "And why are you brining this up now?"

"It's just… the way that you looked, the sadness in your eyes when you held Liara…" Tali said.

"You think I love her? Tali… We are only friends…" Shepard said, stunned at what Tali was hinting at.

"I know it's just… you know- for a split second… back there… it just felt like you loved her more…" Tali explained nervously.

"Tali… your just becoming paranoid. We are married and bonded…" Shepard grabbed her hand with his free hand that still had the bonding cloth wrapped around it. Tali's hand also still had it wrapped around hers. "I love you more than the world-the galaxy itself…" Shepard said.

"Thank-you Shepard… err… John…" Tali said squeezing his hand.

"Call me by whatever makes you feel comfortable…" Shepard explained.

"Now if you two lovebirds are done talking about your sappy suspicions and mistrust, I think I have found something." Zaeed said.

They walked into the confines of a small metal alcove with a large vault-like door blocking their way. There was only a single panel beside the door, but it was blown out. Tali looked at the mess of burnt wires and cracked processors. She threw the pieces back into the open box and grunted with annoyance.

"It's going to have to be manually opened…" Tali said.

"Like how… Might I ask, quarian…" Zaeed said condescendingly.

"It's Tali, call me Tali please…" Tali said, annoyed.

"Fine, _Tali_, how are we going to open the door _Tali_?" Zaeed asked, throwing his arms out at the end.

"I'm going to have to hotwire the door." Tali explained, giving Zaeed and narrow glare.

"Well get going! Vido is waiting for us!" Zaeed yelled.

Shepard gave Tali an understanding stare as she went angrily over to the panel to try to hotwire it. Zaeed sat down and leaned his back against the wall. Shepard walked over to Tali and offered to help. She grumbled something and brushed Shepard off. Shepard took a few steps back and watched her quick and nimble hands quick grab and connect wires. Once the whole circuit looked complete, she quickly snapped two wires out of their holes and wrapped them together. She rubbed the one to the top of the panel and the other to the central coil of wires. The sparks began to fly and the door began to slowly open.

Zaeed jumped to his feet and stuck his flamethrower to the door to see what was behind it, but it was only another dark hallway. Zaeed grumbled to himself as he stepped through the door and stepped into the darkness of the next. He wanted someone to kill. He wanted Vido, but he could have went with anyone at that moment. After Tali had walked through the door, it sealed itself closed again.

"Why didn't you keep it open?" Zaeed asked.

"I had to manually open an automatic door. Once I stopped manually opening it, it's going to automatically close again…" Tali explained.

"Well how do we get out?" Zaeed asked.

Tali shrugged and walked past him into the darkness. Shepard brushed past him too and walked into the confining darkness. Zaeed smiled to himself and walked after them.

"That is why you joined this crazy man…" Zaeed whispered to himself.

He quickly caught up to the couple who had walked surprisingly well through the darkness without a light. They finally made it to another door that opened automatically. The next room was also dark, but was actually a room instead of a cavern. Shepard and Tali walked into the room first followed closely by Zaeed. The lights clicked on and hard objects were pressed against their heads. By the time their eyes focused they could see the shiny, black gun barrels against their heads and the mercenaries wearing black leather suits standing there. There was no way that they could escape this one so they surrendered and hoped for the best.

"The boss would like to see you…" One said.


	43. Chapter 43: A Plan Is Set

Shepard, Tali, and Zaeed were escorted to a side room where they were thrown in. Zaeed quickly stood up after he had stood up and ran at the door, but it closed immediately after the black suited mercenaries had left. He beat the wall with his fists and screamed at the soundproof door.

"Vido! Come out and fight like a fucking man!" He smashed the door again. "Vido!" Zaeed yelled.

He slid down the door and turned to Shepard and Tali who looked at Zaeed with a hint of fear.

"What are you looking at?" Zaeed yelled at them.

He lifted his hand up to the large scars on his face and traced each crease that it made in his face. He pointed at Shepard in one fluid motion.

"I thought you were being careful! I thought that you had your eyes open, but no! You had to walk ahead of me and block the light so that we couldn't see them!" Zaeed yelled.

"Let's not play the blame game, Zaeed!" Shepard yelled.

Zaeed instantly rose and walked towards the Commander. The look on his face confirmed that nothing good was going to come from this.

"Blame Game Shepard!? Really!? You think this is a game!?" Zaeed yelled, getting dangerously close to Shepard's face. "This isn't a fucking game! We are going to die. Why? Because you fucked up!" Zaeed yelled.

"I want you to calm down!" Shepard commanded.

"Who are you to tell me what to do?" Zaeed yelled.

"I am your Commander!" Shepard yelled.

"No! You are my contract! I can terminate it whenever I want!" Zaeed yelled.

"Then why haven't you!?" Shepard yelled.

"Please! Please! Please! Stop fighting! Both of you!" Tali yelled pushing herself in the middle of them.

"You better move your ass you quarian!" Zaeed yelled as he tried to push her out of the way.

"She told you not to call her quarian! Her name is Tali!" Shepard yelled.

"Look at what you two are doing! You're nitpicking everything that each other says. If you kill Shepard or Shepard kills you in this room then what have you accomplished? You are just helping Vido! Do you want that Zaeed? Do you want to fulfill what Vido probably planned?" Tali yelled at them.

Zaeed finally broke his stare from Shepard and stared at her. The piercing glare of Zaeed's different colored eyes caused her to pull back like he was about to hit her, but he finally breathed out and closed his eyes. He walked away from Shepard and sat in the corner.

"She's right Shepard… I'm…" the next word he struggled with. "…sorry…" Zaeed said.

"I know we're all on edge right now, but we have to focus. Tali is there anyway that we can get out of here?" Shepard asked.

"There's nothing… There are no wires, no data banks, nothing. The only wires that go into this room are to power the lights…" Tali said as she stared up at the yellow stained light.

Zaeed smashed his head against the wall sending a dull thud echoing in the room. Shepard looked around trying to find something that they could use to get out or at least defend themselves, but the bare room offered no such object. Shepard took a seat beside Zaeed and Tali took a seat by Shepard. They waited for whatever horrors that Vido was going to throw at them.

-Somewhere else on the vast base-

Krog was getting sick of all the dark hallways and metal doors blocking his way. He almost laughed when he entered a room that wasn't a cavern. Suddenly the lights flicked on, and he felt the cold touch of a metal barrel touch his neck. He started laughing and looking at the six mercenaries in the room. They had their guns pointed at him which only appeared to be a greeting to Krog. He laughed harder which caused the one who had his gun stuck in Krog's neck to lift it away to smack him in the head. Bad move.

Krog took the split second change from the gun being on his neck to bring his fist down hard on the ground causing the tile floor to rise up in a wave which knocked most of the soldiers off balance. Krog ran at the first mercenary and showed him what it truly was to feel fear. The bones of the mercenary became dust within his own body as the gloved hand was brought down on the mercenaries head. Krog turned back to see the stunned mercenaries.

"You're not Shepard!" One managed to yell.

"Shepard!" Krog had to laugh. "I didn't know Shepard was Krogan!" Krog yelled as he ran towards the other pocket of mercenaries who shot at him.

The mercenaries behind Krog also opened fired on him. He grabbed the heads of the two mercenaries in front of him and ran up the wall and onto the ceiling. The other mercenaries were completely lost seeing a crazed Krogan running on the ceiling towards them with two mercenaries in his hands. Krog smashed two of the mercenaries' heads with the two heads of the ones that he was holding. The sixth mercenary watched in shock as the Krogan ran into the light of the room causing it to go dangerously dark again.

The mercenary struggled to turn his night vision on to find the Krogan. He quickly turned it on to look up into the eyes of an upside-down Krogan face staring directly into his eyes. The man started shaking in his boots causing Krog to chuckle. The man backed up against the wall while Krog stepped forwards on the ceiling to the man.

"Please! What do you want?" The mercenary yelled.

"I want Shepard…" the Krogan said softly.

"I don't know where he is!" the mercenary yelled.

"Pity…" Krog said raising his hand to disintegrate the man's head, but the sudden crackle of the man's radio stopped him.

"Alpha team… Alpha team… This is Charlie team… we have Shepard… stand down. You are the second guard shift for the third interrogation room…" the radio crackled.

"Third interrogation room? Is that where they are keeping Shepard?" Krog asked.

"Yes! Yes! It is!" The man pleaded as tears ran down his face.

"Take me there… and I might spare your life, but no promises…" Krog said with a smile.

Seeing that it was better than just dying there, the man accepted the Krogan's request.

The door to the interrogation room opened. A single mercenary with an assault rifle walked into the room and pointed at the quarian.

"The boss would like to see you…" the mercenary said.

Tali rose, but Shepard grabbed her hand and rose too.

"You are not going to take her!" Shepard yelled standing in front of Tali.

"The boss told me that you would probably do this…" He pulled out a strange box-like object and pointed it at Shepard.

Shepard held his ground and stood defiantly at the man, but the strange blast from the box shape instantly caused Shepard's muscles to weaken and collapse.

"Shepard!" Tali yelled.

"Come here you quarian bitch!" yelled the mercenary taking a step towards her/

She grabbed the front of the gun and pushed it out of the way as the bullets began to stream from it. She punched her hand right below the helmet of the mercenary hitting him right in the throat knocking the wind out of him. She reached down and pulled the knife out of the man's leg sheath and stabbed it into his leg. She ripped it up along the man's leg till it stopped at the man's hip. She pulled the knife out and stabbed it into the man's head causing him to drop the gun.

Zaeed quickly jumped over and grabbed the assault rifle and unloaded it into the door way where multiple guards started walking in. Each one was killed by that single volley of fire. When everything looked clear, Zaeed looked over at the bloody Tali who was standing over Shepard who was on the ground out cold.

"Damn woman…" Zaeed managed to say as he looked over at the mutilated man laying on the ground; his leg twitched with a jolt of the dying brain.

"Shepard…" Tali whispered into his ear. "You need to wake up…"

Shepard didn't move.

"Leave him…" Zaeed said.

Tali turned angrily at him.

"You Bosh'tet!" Tali yelled as she rose and pointed a finger at him. "Why would I leave him hear? So that he will get killed? Never!"

"They will take him straight to Vido! We will follow them and strike. We will save him and quickly get out of this hellhole so you and Shepard can go on your merry, romantic honeymoon or whatever…" Zaeed reasoned.

Tali looked down at Shepard and back at Zaeed. He had a point, but she didn't want to take the risk. The radio began to crackle. "Charlie team! Charlie team! Do you read! Where is the quarian?"

Zaeed looked down at the radio and picked it up.

"Zaeed don't do it…" Tali pleaded.

Zaeed didn't listen. "Hello this is Zaeed Massani! I'm here to give a delivery of death to Vido Santiago!"

"Massani!" Came Vido's voice. "I should have figured that Shepard would take you with him! Guards! Get to interrogation room three. Alpha team!… Alpha team!… Somebody figure out what is wrong with Alpha team!"

"Come on Tali! We need to hide. Grab a gun and come on!" Zaeed yelled running out the door.

Tali grabbed a gun and walked to the door of the room. She looked back at Shepard and tried to see that she was doing the right thing here, but none of it seemed right. She ran out the door with tears running down her face. She wanted to shoot herself for doing that. She promised herself that if anything would happen to Shepard she would kill Zaeed then herself.

"Everyone that is to blame…" She promised herself.

Zaeed stopped and ran back to the room and dragged the body of one of the mercenaries that was not too badly shot up.

"What are you doing now!?" Tali yelled.

"I had a better idea…" Zaeed said.

Tali watched as Zaeed stripped the man down and put his armor and helmet on. He handed Tali one of the radios.

"Make this a voice changer… Now!" Zaeed commanded.

"Why?" Tali asked.

"Just do it!" Zaeed yelled.

"It took her only a second to adjust the parameters of the radio to make it a voice changer.

Zaeed stuck the radio inside of the lip of the dark black helmet that hid his face. He picked up the assault rifle and held out his arms.

"So do I look like one of the guards?" Zaeed asked, but his voice sounded completely different.

"Yes… But why?…" Tali started to ask, but she stopped as he lifted his gun up at her.

"Zaeed… What are you?…" Tali asked.

"Get back to your prison!" Zaeed yelled.

Tali lifted her hands as Zaeed threatened to shoot her.

"Zaeed?…" Tali whimpered.

A group of guards ran around the corner and pointed their guns at Tali. Tali stood in the middle of guns pointed at her and her heart beat faster than any other time in her life.

"I stopped her from escaping!" Zaeed yelled.

"Good job soldier…" said one of the soldiers. "Did you see Massani anywhere?"

"He ran back in the tunnels… probably to lure us in there so he could kill us…" Zaeed lied.

"We'll just use his friends as bait to get him to get out… You'll see… He come out like a worm in the rain…" The mercenaries laughed. Tali was surprised to hear Zaeed laugh authentically.

He walked past her, but he threw her a small glance to reassure her. He walked into the ranks of the guards who looked at him thoughtfully, but let him pass. One of the guards looked in the room and found Shepard's body laying helplessly on the ground.

"Hey! He left Shepard in here!" one yelled.

"Zaeed isn't the brightest bulb in the box…" Zaeed said.

"Apparently…" another said.

Tali could bet any money that in some other life, Zaeed must have been an actor because everything he said was gold.

Tali and Shepard's body was quickly ushered away into the next hallway that led further into the complex. Ten minutes later, Krog punched his way through the door to the room and found the bodies of the mercenaries in the room. The style of the blade work could have only been done by one person, and the small piece of fabric that was on the ground was that of a bonding cloth. Krog picked it up and smelled it.

"Shepard…" he whispered to himself. He put it in one of his side pockets and pushed his mercenary prisoner out of the way. "You better show me where they went…"


	44. Chapter 44: Krog's Sacrifice

Vision blurred. Body aching. Legs dragging. Mind unfocused. Shepard woke up with his arms and legs firmly tied to chair in the middle of a pool of light. He blinked groggily at the strange shapes in front of him that slowly focused into coherent pictures. His memory was jump started and his body quickly tried to break the clamps that were firmly holding him in place.

"Ahhh… I see that your finally awake, Shepard." Vido said.

"Vido! Where's Tali?" Shepard demanded.

"Shepard… Shepard… Please… contain yourself…" Vido said, condescendingly. "She's right here…"

Vido put his hand behind Shepard's head and patted someone else's head. Shepard turned his head as far over as he could to see if he could see who it was though he already knew it.

"Tali! Tali?!" Shepard yelled.

"I'm here Shepard… Don't worry…" Tali said, shaking with fear.

"Everything's going to be alright… I'll come up with something…" Shepard promised.

"I know…" Tali said as she looked over at one of the masked guards and smiled under her mask.

Vido paced around the tied couple. "Now… Shepard. I don't want to break my promise to you. I told you that the quarian would be first." Vido walked over and stuck his fingers under her chin and lifted it up so she was looking at him.

"Bosh'tet!" Tali screamed.

"Take her hands off of her!" Shepard yelled.

"Spin them…" Vido commanded to his guards.

Two guards came out and spun the Tali's and Shepard's chairs so that they were facing each other. Shepard struggled with the clamps again hoping that they would break open and that he could strangle Vido, but the clamps were new and bolted firmly to the chair. He stopped and looked at Tali who seemed to have accepted her fate, and sat their peacefully.

"Tali! Tali…" Shepard struggled trying to accept fate. "I shouldn't have taken you. I should have left you safe on the Normandy…" Shepard said.

Vido walked over and knelt beside Tali and looked at Shepard.

"You know what I've always wondered? I always wondered what would happen if the mask of a quarian was removed… How much pain and sickness they would feel… the agony…" Vido said as he looked over at Tali and back at Shepard. "Did ever want to see that out of curiosity?" Vido asked as he rubbed his finger down the side of Tali's helmet.

"Vido… don't harm her… you want me!" Shepard yelled.

"I want to see you squirm Shepard. I want to see you suffer for what you did to me!" Vido yelled stepping into sight of Shepard.

His face was broken and scarred with deep ridges. The cybernetics that were attached to his face appeared to just barely hold his face together. The large metal ring around his neck that blinked periodically appeared to be amplify Vido's voice, and hold his neck in place.

"You ruined my life Shepard! You and that damn dog Massani! Why can't you just simply die!?" Vido yelled as he walked over to Tali and grabbed her visor.

"Any last words?" Vido asked.

"Shepard… I…" Tali started.

"Too late!" Vido yelled as he ripped off her mask.

Tali took a deep breath in and looked around the room whenever the mask came off. Shepard sat staring calmly in his chair. It took all of his self control to not let Vido get to him. The only thing he couldn't stop was the wall of tears that quickly blocked his vision.

"Tali…" Shepard barely could say.

Tali wanted to tell him that she had activated the antibiotic injection of her cybernetic hand and that she was simply acting to fool Vido, but that would ruin the ruse. At most, her anger at herself for not telling Shepard made the reaction all that more believable. Her eyes became bloodshot and full of tears; not because of any reaction, but because she was crying. She could feel the wet mucus drip from her nose as she stared helplessly at Shepard's anguished face, but she had to keep up the rouse so she struggled with the clamps for a bit to throw him off.

Vido walked to Shepard's side and stared at Tali. "Beautiful isn't it?" Vido asked.

"I'm going to kill you…" Shepard promised.

"Really?" Vido asked. "From what I can see… your stuck in a chair, and I have all the guns… so, I think its going to be me who is going to kill you."

Shepard watched as Tali had drooped her head and had stopped much movement. It must be agonizing. Shepard thought to himself. Tali, on the other hand, was counting out the time that most quarians could last in this exposure. She guessed that she had to stay there for at least another three minutes before she would have to act like she passed. She counted each second and kept her eyes off of Shepard.

Zaeed stood watching the quarian play her role perfectly. He could have bet that she could have been an excellent quarian actor if her life depended on it. He repositioned the gun that was sitting in his hand and waited for the best opportunity, but Vido's defenses were still solid.

"Oh, and Massani…" Vido said looking right at him.

The two guards on both sides of Zaeed grabbed his arms and tore him out of the row. Tali's heart almost stopped as he was dragged past her, but her life depended on her acting. She reached the five minute mark and dropped her head limply, but still kept her ears open to try to see what was going on.

"Do you think I'm stupid you damn dog?" Vido asked, a crooked smile stretched across his crooked face.

"No, but your uglier than me now!" Zaeed yelled in his face.

"All bark, but no bite." Vido said. "I have you right where I want you-"

The door suddenly blew off its hinges hitting the wall on the other side of the room.

"What the hell!?" Vido yelled.

A large shadow walked into the doorway and looked around. An audible laugh echoed in the room before a large gust of wind hit the dust in front of it causing one of the men to be blown by the blast. Vido instantly jumped to his feet and ran out the back door with two guards. The rest of the guards were left to fight the crazed Krogan. They open fired on the Krogan, but their bullets, too, curved around the Krogan. One bullet hit the side arm bar of Shepard's chair. It hit his arm and caused him to start bleeding, but it did break the clamp. Shepard quickly reached over to the other clamp and tore it open. He slid his hand out and looked around the floor for Tali, but she wasn't there. He looked around the room, but the combined darkness and dust made recognition of any quarian body on the floor made it impossible.

Instead, his attention was brought to the dual laughter of two crazy soldiers. Zaeed and Krog were back and back unloading into the large groups of soldiers that were pouring into the rooms. Shepard wanted to warn Zaeed, but found that his voice would most likely draw the attention of the large Krogan standing behind him. A rocket flew into the room and hit Krog right in the chest sending him into Zaeed knocking both of them down.

Krog stood up quickly and punched the metal chair in front of him into the door way where the rocket originated. The collective scream was proof that Krog had hit his mark. Shepard stumbled around the floor looking for a weapon, but the only dead soldiers were those that were dying in the doorways. He finally came to two familiar feet. He looked up to see that Tali was handing him a pistol; her mask was firmly reattached to her helmet.

"Tali? I thought?…" Shepard started as he rose.

"I'll explain later Shepard. Right now we have to fight!" Tali yelled.

Shepard rose quickly and ran towards the door that Zaeed was unloading in, Vido's door. He waved for Zaeed to follow, and he did. Krog quickly became aware of the small party running into the door behind him, and he would have turned to chase them, but he caught a bullet I the chest where the missile had broken his armor. He simply laughed at the impact before he smashed his fist into the ground causing the doorway to give way and collapse. He quickly turned to the other door and charged after Shepard.

Shepard, Tali, and Zaeed were already halfway down the halfway when they heard the loud crash and silence behind them. Shepard and Tali quickened their pace as Zaeed slowed down and saw Krog run around the corner.

"Hey its that Krogan… Is he on our side?" Zaeed asked.

"No! He wants to kill us!" Tali yelled.

"Damn!" Zaeed yelled as he quickly turned around and caught up to Shepard and Tali.

They quickly turned a corner that quickly turned back into the same path as the hallway that they had just run down. They hoped that the turn would diminish the intense amount of momentum that the Krogan had gained, but the large crash behind them only told them that walls were not an issue for Krog.

"Damn! Shepard! Who is this guy?" Zaeed yelled at him.

"Long story!" Shepard yelled taking a sharp right.

Krog cut the corner short, but he easily smashed through the wall. He laughed at the shear panic that the three unfortunate beings in front of him were experiencing. They rounded the next corner, only to find themselves in a room with five YMIR mechs.

"Aww, hell no!" Zaeed yelled.

Every mech raised their chain guns and fired at them. They ran perpendicular to the mechs causing the bullets to trail inches behind them. Krog didn't want those mechs to get any lucky shot off on Shepard so he charged straight at them. The one that he ran at instantly caught the large threat on its sensors and turned to see the Krogan. Its chain gun instantly turned and tore up the side of Krog's armor that was still in one piece. Krog's fist quickly destroyed the mech, but the noise attracted the other mechs who started to fire at him.

Shepard, Tali, and Zaeed stopped and looked at the Krogan become pinned behind a crate. Shepard hated himself for saying it, but his moral code demanded it.

"We need to save him!" Shepard yelled.

"Shepard? Are you crazy? He is the krogan is trying to kill us. Both of us." Tali said.

"We can't just let him die when he just saved us…" Shepard said.

"Okay Shepard… but we run whenever he gets the situation under control…" Tali said.

"Of course… I'm not stupid…" Shepard said with a joyous smile.

They all open fired on the closest mech bringing its shields down quickly. Tali and Shepard both hacked the mech at the same time causing a permanent drone. Zaeed stayed in the front unloading his assault rifle into the other mechs causing their attention to quickly change away from Krog. Krog took the chance to jump over his cover and charge the remaining mechs; he didn't seem the least bit afraid nor did he look like he was wounded despite the condition of his armor.

Shepard and Tali's mech made quick work of another mech while Krog smashed two more. He quickly turned to the last one which was Shepard and Tali's. He looked up at the balcony and laughed as the mech aimed its rocket launcher at him.

"What do you want Shepard?" Krog asked.

"I want you to help me!" Shepard yelled back.

"To kill Vido? No problem! What's in it for me?" Krog asked.

"You, me, and Tali will fight you without interruption." Shepard promised; Tali tried to object, but Shepard held her back.

Krog laughed. "You got yourself a deal Shepard!"

The mech lowered its gun and shut itself off. Krog laughed as he flicked the edge of it as he walked past. Shepard and Tali still kept their guns trained on him causing him to throw a hurt glance at them.

"Shepard? Really? I'm a man of my word! I wouldn't betray you…" Krog smiled.

"I don't want to trust you, but we don't have time for this!" Shepard put his gun away and started running to the far door.

The doors slid open to the next room which looked like a mess hall. At least thirty Blood Pack Krogans were sitting down at the tables with their guns pointed at them. Krog walked into the room with a large smile. He opened his arms wide as he stepped in front of the team.

"Brothers! Countrymen! Lend me your ears!" Krog yelled joyously.

Some of the Krogans looked at Krog like he was a square piece in a circle club. Some even murmured to other Krogans to figure out what Krog was on about.

"I want to have a toast to my good friend Shepard here!" Krog yelled, stepping aside to reveal Shepard.

Some lifted their guns up to the target that Vido had told them about. Shepard did not feel comfortable with that much armament staring down his throat. Krog, happily, stepped in front of him again holding up a cup that he had grabbed off of the table that was beside them.

"I call a toast for us before this blood bath begins!" Krog yelled like an Omega Vendor haggling for a steal.

"Some Krogans seemed content with the ideas, but others simply rose with their guns pointed directly at them.

Krog chugged the strong Krogan liquor that was in the cup, but instead of putting the cup on the table he turned it over in his right hand. Shepard instantly caught on. Krog, in a feat of speed and agility, had his arm above his head and brought it down hard on the floor at the same time that Shepard shielded Tali and Zaeed from the concussive blast. Shepard could hear Krog laugh even through the chaos of the floor blowing off of the foundation. He wanted to laugh to, but the thought that he would be just as crazy as Krog stopped him from doing so, but he laughed in his head.

"Run! I'll hold them back!" Krog yelled running at the thirty scattered Krogans.

"I don't think you are going to live through this one!" Shepard said.

"Nonsense!" Krog yelled tapping his bullet diverter. "Oh and take this…" Krog handed him the bonding fabric that he had put in his pocket.

Shepard smiled, and he quickly gathered his team together and they made a break for the door. Another concussive blast sent them stumbling through the next door that collapsed under the strain of the underground fissures that Krog continually made. They looked up the staircase where they could hear Vido frantically trying to prep the escape elevator.

"Let's do this…" Zaeed said walking up the stairs.

Krog punched the floor one last time as they entered the door. He watched as the door collapsed along with the one corner of the room burying at least three Krogans. Krog laughed as he peeled the destroyed bullet diverter from his chest. He figured that Shepard would have died helping him live through this even though Krog was meant to kill him. He just laughed at the ideas running through his head.

He reached into another pocket and pulled out a small box-shaped device with a twist plunger on it.

"I always wanted to try this thing…" Krog laughed to himself.

The other Krogans had finally regained their footing and walked towards the psychotic Krogan.

"I don't know what you did there, but we aren't going to let you do it again!" said what appeared to be the leader of the pack.

"Boom…" Krog whispered to himself.

"What did you say worm?" the leader demanded.

Krog laughed as he grabbed the top of the plunger. "Boom!"

He pushed the plunger down hard and all of the sound in the room disappeared.

Zaeed, Shepard and Tali had made it only halfway up the stairs when they felt a rumble that was much greater than if Krog had simply punched the floor. The large dissipation of the sound proved that it was an explosion. A pretty large one by Zaeed's guess. Shepard stared at the rubble pile that was behind him. It sat silently. No movement. Nothing. Shepard felt bad for the death-crazed Krogan. Even though he was going to kill him, Shepard still wanted to commemorate the bravery of him. Though Shepard couldn't see it, a single tear ran down Tali's cheek.


	45. Chapter 45: Beast in the Dark

"What the hell?" Vido yelled looking back at the staircase.

Three familiar and unwanted people emerged from the stairs firing into the guards around him. Vido quickly pressed the ascend button, but the dynamo for the power coupling had been shifted out of place by the quake of Krog's explosion. He quickly reached over to flip the switch back into place, but a large spark caused him to draw his hand back.

"Vido!" Zaeed yelled.

Vido looked back at the firefight that was still filling the room.

"Massani!" Vido yelled at him.

Zaeed ran up the steps to the elevator. One guard tried to stop him, but Zaeed's gun had already blown a hole in his head. The body was then shoved off the side of the platform, landing with a dull thud. Shepard and Tali stood back to back unloading into the mass of soldiers that emerged from the doorways. Shepard looked up to see Zaeed run straight across the platform at Vido who quickly turned to run.

"Get him…" Shepard whispered.

Vido ran to a small alcove that closed once he ran into it. Vido smashed his fist against the door.

"Vido!" Zaeed yelled. "Come out and fight like a man!"

"I will…" Came Vido's voice from behind the shutter.

A rumble from behind the shutter caused Zaeed to take a step back from the alcove.

"Shepard! I might need some help!" Zaeed yelled.

"I can't!" Shepard yelled as two more guards were de-brained by well placed incendiary rounds.

"I'll help him!" Tali yelled, handing him her pistol.

"Go!" Shepard yelled as the two pistols rocked his arms with each fire.

Tali ran quickly to the stairs to get to the top platform where Zaeed was slowly inching away from the shutter. When she reached the top of the stairs, she was almost knocked cold by the butt of a mercenary's shotgun. She quickly was down with her knife out. She quickly stabbed it into the foot of the mercenary, pinning him to the floor. She rose quickly and grabbed the shotgun butt and turned it quickly to the mercenary's head. She squeezed his hand tight causing him to pull the trigger.

She held the shotgun as the headless body fell backwards. She pulled her knife out of the foot and quickly made her way to Zaeed. The shutter bulged out where something, something large, punched it. Tali instantly stopped about halfway to Zaeed to stare at the shutter.

"What's going on?" Shepard yelled as he finished the last of the Blue Suns Mercenaries.

"Shepard… We need you! Now!" Zaeed yelled as the shutter was completely flattened by a large metal claw.

Shepard quickly ran towards the stairs, but a Krogan emerged from the side door. He looked back up at his team, but was forced to deal with the Krogan. He charged the Krogan running full out into his chest. Sadly, the only result of doing that was a dislocated shoulder that he quickly tried to mend. The Krogan laughed.

Zaeed and Tali fired at the large metallic creature that was tearing itself out from the wall. The large elongated dome of its head turned to them revealing Vido sitting in the chair controlling the beast. Flood lights that were attached to the bottom of the main dome focused their light on Zaeed and Tali before a crackle of a speaker filled the large cavern.

"You old dog! You just know when to quit do you? I always have to put you down!" Vido yelled.

"Well you must not be that good of a vet, Vido!" Zaeed yelled at him.

"Just die already!" Vido yelled.

The claws to the large beast lifted up and smashed where Zaeed had just been standing. He rolled out of the way in time to see the other claw clawing its way to him. He ducked just as the claw missed his head. Tali was forced to jump to the side as the claw almost hit her instead. They continued to fire at it, but the bullets ricocheted harmlessly off of it.

Zaeed quickly ran over to Tali who continued to fire at the beast, but still no damages was being done. She quickly opened up her Omni-tool to scan if the machine had any scan-able weakness, but the shield field that the machine continuously reenergized blocked all scans. She cursed under her breath, but instantly ducked again as another claw smashed the wall beside her.

Shepard felt the large crash above him, but his position restricted his view of the platform. The heavy punch of the Krogan quickly brought Shepard back to the matter at hand. The Krogan was the only thing that was blocking his way. He pointed his pistol at him, but the subtle click of the gun just made Shepard look at it helplessly.

"Out of bullets… What a shame…" The Krogan laughed.

Shepard quickly snapped the thermal clip out sending it at the Krogan. The Krogan instantly took interest in it just long enough for Shepard to send a flying fist into the side of the Krogan's cheek sending the Krogan into a small spin. A small cut had opened on the side of his face a bled slightly while the fire burned in his eyes from the cheap shot. His battle cry shook the surrounding metal supports and walkways. Shepard shrank back slightly from the rage that had taken over the Krogan's body, but he knew that running would only get himself killed. He looked around the immediate area to find anything that he could use to kill or at least subdue the Krogan. Nothing.

Shepard positioned himself to guard against the heavy blows of the Krogan. The Krogan arms were brought back and Shepard quickly dove to the side as the fist smashed the floor where he was standing. He quickly stood back up after he had executed his roll and positioned himself for another dodge since blocking would probably break his arms. The Krogan brought his fist down again, but the agile human quickly dove out of the way. Warming up his biotic amp, Shepard quickly charged the Krogan's back sending his head into the rock face of the cavern.

The Krogan turned around with the side of his face torn open with chunks of rock and dust stuck in the blood soaked skin. He grunted at Shepard's attack and wiped his hand across his face.

"You're going to regret that Shepard…" The Krogan said angrily.

The Krogan rushed forwards with a strong uppercut. Shepard tried to jump out of the way, but the fist managed to connect with his side, sending him into an unbalanced spin. Shepard quickly rolled to get back into a defensive position, but the Krogan was already to him with a kick to the ribs. Shepard coughed as the wind was forcibly smashed out of his lungs, and he struggled to stand. The heavy foot of the Krogan prevented him from catching his breath as it smashed down on his back. Shepard could hear the crack of his armor break at the force of the impact. The devastating blow caused Shepard's head to hit off of the floor. He felt the weight of the foot leave his back, but he knew that it was going to be returning quickly.

Right before the foot connected with his back again, Shepard managed to turn himself around and catch the foot in his hands. He could have sworn that the strength of this stomp would have broken his back if he had let it connect. Shepard twisted hard on the Krogan's foot. He felt the popping and cracking noises as the bones broke in his crocodile death spin that brought the Krogan down.

Shepard rolled onto the Krogan's chest and smashed the Krogan as hard as he could in the face. With every punch he hoped that the Krogan would simply be knocked out or give up, but those dreams quickly ended. The Krogan quickly broke Shepard's hold and punched Shepard across the face, sending a tooth flying. Shepard rolled across the ground trying to get his brain to stop spinning as the Krogan stumbled around on his broken ankle.

They both managed to gain control of themselves long enough to run at each other, both yelling to derive the other of the bravery that they were showing. Neither faltered as their bodies collided hard against each other sending both back down to the ground.

Tali quickly jumped over a crate as the large mech smashed the nearby wall with Vido's laugh audibly being broadcasted over the mech's loud speaker.

"Run! Run! As fast as you can! You can't stop me! I'm a wild man!" Vido sang through the microphone.

Tali felt a small graze of her hood as she quickly ducked behind another crate. The large crash and dust cloud beside her only confirmed the closeness of that swing. She quickly stood again and ran away from the crate that quickly disintegrated behind her.

Zaeed managed to sneak behind the large behemoth while it was occupied by Tali. He wrapped together as many inferno grenades as he could. He slapped a sticky dose of medi-gel onto the bouquet of grenades and pulled the pins. He threw it as hard as he could on the back of the mech where the medi-gel caused it to stick. Zaeed laughed as he saw that it worked.

"Tali! You better get down!" Zaeed yelled to her as he ran away from the mech.

Vido turned around to see where Zaeed was, but the large shake of his mech followed by the flood of alarms and warning lights caused him to turn quickly around again to see what had happened. Vido cursed to himself when he saw the large, dark smoke plume billowing from his mech.

"Zaeed! You dog!" Vido yelled swinging the mech around taking another large chunk out of the cavern.

Zaeed ducked under the blind swing and ran over to where Tali had been blown by the explosion. He lifted the chunks of crates and pieces rock to find her laying at the bottom of the pile, out cold. He shook her to try to wake her, but that was no use. He looked around quickly to find a safe place to put her while he finished off Vido. The thick metal bucket seemed like the best choice. He quickly grabbed her and ran her over to the bucket and placed her into it before he turned back to the large mech that hissed and moaned through the damage that now plagues its back. Vido yelled as he brought the mech around to where Zaeed was running to.

He yelled and pressed a large red button on the mech causing the large pincer of a hand to launch itself out of its socket and rocket towards Zaeed. The two outside edges of the claw passed Zaeed on both sides and pinned him against the wall. He yelled out as the claw just cut through his armor and grazed his sides. He struggled to wiggle either the claw free from the wall or himself from the claw, but he was stuck. Vido slowly walked towards him, laughing.

"You just don't when to die!" Vido yelled as he connected the arm socket back to the claw.

The cockpit inched closer to Zaeed as he struggled in the claw that was stuck. Through the tint of the glass and the range of different opaque gases that were floating in the cockpit, Zaeed managed to make out Vido sitting in the center of it all. The front clicked open and Vido stepped out of the smoke and steam. He pulled out a pistol from his holster and pressed it firmly against Zaeed's head, dead center.

"Don't worry… I'll shoot you twice this time…" Vido sneered.

Shepard and the Krogan stumbled around each other. Pain became only a distant memory as they mechanically exchanged blows to each other. Shepard managed to get a strong right hook on the Krogan's jaw, but he was immediately smashed in his ribs again. The blood from Shepard's mouth quickly replaced his spit as he struggled with the large Krogan. A large, black explosion on the top platform broke the mechanical fighting of the Krogan and Shepard. Shepard took the distraction and punched the Krogan directly in the temple.

Shepard uneasily stood and wobbled as his legs refused to strengthen. The Krogan appeared the same way.

"You've got some fight in you… human…" The Krogan panted.

"Thank you…" Shepard said as he rested his body on his knees.

"But I still have to-" The Krogan stopped immediately and gave out a garbled yell.

Shepard looked up to see a large broken piece of metal protruding from the Krogan's chest. The Krogan turned around to look at his assailant, but no one was behind him. He looked around the room looking for the person or thing that had killed him, but the dark grip of death slowly tore the life out of the Krogan. He fell to one knee and grabbed the metal piece. He looked at the blood pour down the curved edge of it. He tried to take deep breaths in as the last bit of life held on. He turned over to look at Shepard just as his knee gave way, and he fell over releasing one last breath.

Shepard breathed out at the luck, but he still quickly looked around for the source of the help, but there was nothing. He turned to the staircase just as he heard Vido talking to Zaeed.

"Don't worry… I'll shoot you twice this time…" He heard Vido say.

Shepard quickened his pace up the stairs trying to get to Zaeed and Vido before Vido finished the task. His legs struggled with the already heavy tiredness that the Krogan had drove him in. He managed to forget about the pain long enough to get halfway up before a loud crack of a gunshot stopped him in his tracks.


	46. Chapter 46: Emergence

The blood dripped from Zaeed's head. Zaeed turned his head over to Vido who he could barely make out through the pain of the gunshot. He was struggling with something, but Zaeed couldn't see what it was. He lifted his hand up to the hole in the side of his head where the bullet had ricocheted off of his jaw. He applied pressure to the wound long enough to clear his vision and look back at Vido.

Vido was stumbling around his mech trying to close the hatch. A black, slender object protruded through both sides of his hands, and from a closer inspection, Zaeed found it to be Tali's knife. He quickly looked over to where he had placed Tali to see her draped over the edge breathing heavily. The top right of her helmet was cracked open revealing a tuft of blue hair. Zaeed struggled in the claw again, but he knew that there was no way that he could get out. He was about to give up when he felt the left end of the claw strain and snap loose from the wall.

He quickly took advantage of the strange occurrence and dove for his gun. The mech's canopy closed, and the mech rattled as it turned back to him. Zaeed found that the mech had not actually turned to him, but to Tali who was behind him. He ran alongside the mech shooting at the large hole the explosion had made, but it made no noticeable impact.

Shepard managed to get to the top of the stairs to see the mech running towards a large metal bucket. He looked at the bucket to see why the mech was going there, but from his point of view he couldn't see anything of interest. He decided to run over to another spot to get a better view. As he ran to a better position he picked up an assault rifle that was laying next to a guard that had been brutally shot. He turned back to the bucket to see a familiar hand draped out of it.

"Tali!" Shepard yelled as his body fell into a desperate sprint.

He had only made it halfway to the bucket when the mech crashed its weight into it. He watched as the bucket tipped on the edge of the tall platform. He felt a new burst of energy as he saw the bucket fall back to its last position. He ran as hard as he could to that bucket, but every step he took towards it seemed to drag the bucket back ten. Shepard looked back at the mech to see what it was doing, but found himself looking at Zaeed instead as his face dripped with blood.

"Zaeed! Hit his canopy with an incendiary grenade!" Shepard yelled.

"I don't have anymore!" Zaeed yelled.

Shepard was about to tell him to do something else to buy them more time, but movement from Tali stopped all of his thoughts. Her Omni-tool glittered to life and her hand worked slowly through the processes. A purple orb materialized in the air beside her and flew headlong at the mech. It smashed into the canopy and exploded sending the bullet proof glass shattering around Vido.

Zaeed quickly lifted his gun up to the top of the canopy and fired into the control center blindly. The control panels sparked as the bullets ripped the machine's soul out of it. Vido blocked his face from the fury of sparks and lifted his legs to avoid the fury of gun fire. He quickly stood and grabbed an assault rifle as he jumped out of the other side of the mech. He turned to run, but an invisible force smashed him against the mech.

"What the-" Vido started to say, but another heavy thud to his chest stopped him mid-sentence.

He felt something grab his armor and he was thrown back into the canopy of the ship. He looked around quickly and turned to run from the ghost, but he was caught by Zaeed holding Tali's knife. He tried to breath in as he felt the jagged edge ripping at his insides, but his lungs felt tattered. He looked up at Zaeed who stared at him with a stern face. Zaeed pulled the knife out to stab him again. Vido made a small whimper as the second stab entered his body. He fell backwards with the knife still sticking out of his chest. He stumbled over a chair and fell to the ground. Zaeed walked after him and pulled out his pistol.

"Please…" Vido pleaded through the blood that was now dripping out of his mouth. "…Have mercy…"

Zaeed checked the bullet in the gun and aimed it at his head.

"Don't worry… I won't miss…" Zaeed promised.

Shepard grabbed Tali's hand who weakly gripped his. A gunshot from the mech caused him to briefly turn, but upon seeing Zaeed standing, he turned his attention back to Tali. He reached over the edge of the bucket and wrapped his arms around her slender body and pulled her out. Her raspy breathing was a bad sign. Shepard grabbed her hand to activate any antibiotics, but it was empty. He checked her time that she had on her last dose. Only thirty seconds remained. He quickly picked her up and ran her over to the elevator.

"Zaeed! Come on we have to go!" Shepard yelled.

He placed Tali on the elevator in a seated position as she struggled for air. He looked back to yell at Zaeed again, but he saw him fall inside of the mech. Shepard looked back at Tali before he sprinted again towards the mech. He climbed up into it to find Zaeed barely breathing from blood loss. He wrapped his arms around him to lift him, but his muscles finally gave out. Only a familiar voice broke him out of his weakened state.

"Go Shepard! I'll carry him!"

Tali propped herself up on the railing and looked over at the burning mech. She wanted to see Shepard again. From the thick steam of the burning mech she saw two shadows emerge, but one didn't seem quite right. Once they broke through the steam barrier, she saw why. Behind Shepard, she saw the distinct outline of the tall, familiar Krogan.

"Krog…" she whispered to herself.

She stared at the almost unharmed Krogan. She looked pleadingly up at Shepard, but he shook his head. Krog quickly wrapped Zaeed's head up to stop the bleeding from the hole in his jaw. Shepard hit the ascend button, and the elevator began a slow ascent. Shepard looked over to Tali who strained more and more for breath. The tears in his eyes began to cloud his vision of her. Krog looked over at Tali and at Shepard. He walked over to her and grabbed her hand.

"Krog…" Shepard started.

"Shh…"

Krog pulled out a pack of some strange fluid from one his packs. He slowly lifted Tali down so she was laying. He put his hand on her throat and followed it down to the center of her breasts. Shepard began to feel the burning hatred fill his body, but his strength denied him any action. Krog moved over to her right breast and moved slightly under it. Tali breathed rapidly as she tried to figure out what the Krogan was doing. Krog looked up at Shepard.

"Trust me…" Krog said to him with a smile.

Before Shepard could question why he would have to trust him, Krog had already cupped Tali's breast and lifted it out of the way as a needle sprang from the pack. He brought it down hard at the bottom of the breast. Shepard tried to hop up and stop Krog, but the deed was already done. Tali's breathing slowed as her head went limp. Krog pulled out a small clip and clipped the small hole that he made in her suit. He pulled out another piece of strange metallic fabric and placed it over the hole in her helmet. A drop from a small blue liquid caused it to instantly weld itself to the helmet, sealing the gap.

Shepard fell back into a seated position and stared at the strange Krogan. The Krogan quickly looked at his arm and shrugged.

"Well my time is nearly up…" Krog said quietly.

"What are you talking about?" Shepard asked.

Krog chuckled slightly as he turned to Shepard. "I see that you fail to set the pieces together…" Krog pointed to an area of his neck. "Where is that scar your wife here slashed into me?"

Shepard looked at it and saw no such scar.

"But…" Shepard tried to understand.

"Do you know the drone your wife hear can materialize from nothing? Well, I am Krog's. I was sent to help you." The Krog drone said.

"So you have a free mind?" Shepard asked.

It laughed. "No I am being controlled."

"But that would mean…" Shepard started to say.

"Yes… Your theory would be correct Shepard… I am still alive." The drones voice changed to a more familiar tone.

"But how?" Shepard asked in disbelief as the pieces of the drones image began to fall apart.

"I'm full of tricks Shepard… Just because I was in a room that exploded does not mean that I exploded. Yes I didn't escape unscathed, but I am still very much alive. Sadly the cavern could not hold out against the explosion so I could not get to you, but I could materialize a drone on the other side of the collapse to make sure that you lived through the confrontation." Krog explained.

Shepard stared at the drone as the full image of Krog faded revealing a small clear drone that quickly faded from existence. Shepard looked at Zaeed and Tali who both kept their patches which he thanked Krog for. As much as he hated that nosy Krogan, he always seemed to save him. He opened his Omni-tool and scanned Tali and found that she was plagued with infections, but they seemed to have stopped spreading. _One of Krog's tricks?_ He could only cross his fingers.

The elevator rose up to a small outcropping building beside the complex. Shepard picked Tali up and carried her over to the shuttle. When he turned, he found Zaeed walking over to him on his own. He threw him a satisfied smile as he passed, but beyond that, Zaeed appeared drained.

The shuttle rise up to the Normandy was quiet as they thought about the close calls that each had faced. Shepard looked out of his window to see the dark-ash clouds fly past his window. At one point, he thought he saw a shadowy outline of another ship leaving the surface. He smiled to himself as he thought about Krog.

Krog sat in his shuttle looking at the damage of his body. He groaned at the large piece of metal that protruded from his broken leg. The fingers on his right hand had been sheared off by some unfortunate shrapnel. His left arm was also broken from a flying Krogan that had been blown by the explosion. Krog looked at the tiny box that had caused the whole mess.

"You pack a little punch don't you?" Krog asked the small piece of destruction. Krog grabbed a bucket of medi-gel and put his hand into it.

He stared at the star charts to see where the closest hospital was or at least the nearest cybernetics depot because he was going to need full body make-over to fix the mess he was in. Krog chucked to himself as the pain of his slashed leg ran through his body. He wrapped his leg up the best he could, but he knew that if he didn't find a hospital soon that he might just die so he punched the engines to their maximum and blasted off to Illium.

Shepard sat in the medical bay with a couple of stitches and bandages around the minor wounds that he had received. The two people on the med-bay table. Shepard blamed himself for their predicaments. He walked over to Zaeed who stared up at him, and was glad that Zaeed was stubborn. He walked over to Tali who appeared to be in intense pain as the antibiotics burned her system clean of bacteria. Shepard grabbed her hand and kissed it. Tali managed to look over at him.

"Shepard…" She breathed in as a wave of pain racked her body. "What happened?"

"A friend saved your life…" Shepard whispered to her.

"You mean that frisky Krogan? Bosh'tet…" She said, jerking again.

"I don't know… He saved your life…" Shepard said, smiling.

"Still a Bosh'tet…" Tali said as she turned around and closed her eyes.

Shepard walked over to Chakwas.

"How is she?" Shepard asked.

"Technically she should be dead after that long of exposure, but whatever Krog filled her system with gave her enough time to get here. She's a lucky woman Shepard. You Should thank Krog the next time you see him…" Chakwas said.

"I don't think that another confrontation with the Krogan is going to be that civil." Shepard laughed to himself.

"Well before he kills you Commander, remember to thank him." Chakwas said.

"I'll have to do that," Shepard laughed to himself.

The elevator ride to the CIC was relaxing. The doors opened and the familiar setting of his 'home' came into view. He walked over to his personal computer and saw a blinking urgent message from the hospital on Illium.

"Liara…" Shepard whispered to himself as he punched the coordinates in for Joker to receive.


	47. Chapter 47: Worry and Comfort

*Author's Note- I tried to write this chapter completely in the present tense instead of the past. It was far more difficult than I thought it would be. Hopefully you like the change in tense. Review and Enjoy!*

The engines jolted to life as the Normandy set its course to Illium. Shepard tensed his muscles as his knuckles turned white on the rail. He could have sworn that he felt the metal buckle under his Herculean grip, but upon letting go briefly, found it to be unharmed. His heart thumped strong irregular beats as the worry of Liara's well-being plagued his mind. He stared down at the ground and shifted his eyes around it. He found himself not looking at the floor but Liara's death bed. The sheet over her face, blocking the horror, the sadness; the gathering of fellow friends, tears, sobbing, broken breaths; the looks of the doctors, gloomily, sullen, sad; the stillness of the air, cold, empty, unforgiving.

Shepard shook his head at the thoughts. He pictured happier futures. He could see Liara, sitting up in her bed drinking soup. Her body is shaking from the loss of blood, but her composure has been retrieved. She smiles sheepishly at him placing the soup on the night stand table. He walks over to her, flowers in hand, Blue Gyciums, her favorite. She smiles wider as she takes the flowers, grips her side, and places them on the table. Shepard hugs her feeling the sadness of losing one of his squad mates. He whispers in her ear that he is sorry for involving her with Vido. That he would never let this happen to her again. Tali steps up to him, nervously rubbing her hands together. She looks at Tali and back at Shepard. She softly places her hands on Shepard's back. He accepts the gesture and rises taking Tali's waist in his arm, pulling her close. Liara smiles, single tear breaks.

Five minutes. Ten minutes. Thirty minutes. Shepard cannot feel the time fly past as the ship flies through the void of space. He decides that he should talk to Tali, see how she is handling her new apprentice. The elevator doors close with a silent hiss. The rotors come to life. The elevator descends. The door opens to reveal Zaeed standing in front of him, his head wrapped with bandages, bags in his hands.

"Shepard. I was coming to look for you. I've decided that I am going to be leaving the Normandy." Zaeed spoke with his usual sternness.

"I understand… What will you be doing now?" Shepard asked, stepping from the elevator.

"I think I'm going to take command of the Blue Suns again. I will try to bend the wills of the other mercenary bands to assist you in your fight against the Reapers." Zaeed said, walking past him into the elevator.

"You think they will listen to you?" Shepard asked.

"They are going to have to Shepard, or else I will kill them on the spot. Plus these two head wounds should increase my status in the group." Zaeed promised.

"I guess I will see you around Massani…" Shepard said bowing his head.

"As I you, Shepard…" Zaeed said as the doors to the hissed shut.

The walk to the engineering room seemed awkwardly different. Maybe it was the sounds of the pipes or the atmosphere of the room. Maybe it has always been like this, but Shepard had never noticed before. He shrugs off the idea. _No point in getting worked up about details._ Tali stood at her place while Eric Grech worked furiously through the calibration data. Shepard had to laugh at the sight as Tali slapped his hands with every mistake.

The silence of Shepard's steps allows him to get directly behind Tali. His quick thrust of his arms around her waist caused her to yelp and jump with shock. She angrily turns at Shepard with a teacher's disciplinary finger pointing straight at him. Tali sees Shepard and her heart sings. Her fever burns her lungs as she takes a breath in to stop her heart from ripping through her chest. She quickly looks back at Eric who had stopped working on his calibrations to watch them.

"Keep up your good work, Eric. You will get it… eventually…" Tali said.

Tali waves her hand over to the engine core walkway. Shepard grabs Tali hand as they make their way to the mirror sphere of the radiating engine core. On reaching the end, Tali turns to Shepard and places her hands in his, their bonding wraps were perfectly identical. She played with his hands, playing close attention to the way that her wrap appeared to vanish when she passed it over his.

"What did you want Shepard?" She asked, throwing his hands around playfully.

"I just wanted to get my mind off of Liara… I'm worried about her…" Shepard said, sadly.

"You can't change anything… You know that Shepard. You are amazing, but you are still just a man…" Tali consoled.

"I know… I just feel useless waiting for her, just sitting here while she dies…" Shepard said, painfully.

"I know what it must be like… to be like Liara's father. You love her like she is your daughter; you worry about her well-being; you worry about her future, yet you do not love her as you love me…" Tali places her hands on his chest and leans in forward to feel his body press hers. "You worry about her. It is normal for a father to worry about his daughter…" Tali said, distantly remembering her own father.

Shepard wraps his arms around her waist again and pulls her in closer. He rests his head on her shoulder as their bodies slowly twist and rock.

"I knew you would be able to put my mind at rest…" Shepard whispered.

"I'm a quarian, Shepard. I know what a close-knit family is like. Extremely close." Tali said, tightening her grip around him.

"Did you take another shot?" Shepard asked, quietly.

Tali's eyes dart around the room. She guiltily lowers her head before she speaks.

"Yes… I took another shot…" Tali said, almost disgusted with herself.

"Tali. Tali. Tali." Shepard gripped her tighter. "This isn't for you, not just you, but it is for us, for our family…" Shepard felt Tali's heart beat a few times at those two words, 'our family'.

"You always know how to put my mind at ease." Tali said, almost pressing her mask against his face.

"We should probably wait until you're in better condition before we do anything…" Shepard hinted.

"Ooo. Yes commander." Tali shifted her weight. "We wouldn't want to risk that…" Tali said, romantically.

Meanwhile, Kenneth and Gabby had stopped working. They had snuck around the corner to spy on the commander with Tali.

"What are they talking about?" Kenneth asked Gabby.

"I don't think we should be spying on the commander and his wife, Kenneth." Gabby said, guiltily to Kenneth.

"Nonsense. The Commander wouldn't mind… I wonder what they talk about when they hide back there?" Kenneth wondered to himself.

Gabby turns away from the immature actions of Kenneth, but is immediately brought back to the action when Kenneth makes a more than subtle remark of Tali's actions. Gabby swings her head back around the corner back to the lovely couple. She finds Shepard holding Tali's body close to his. She feels the embarrassment burn her cheeks as she looked back at Kenneth angrily.

"Kenneth! Stop spying on the commander!" Gabby insisted.

Kenneth blows her off. "I wonder if I will ever be in that position with someone…" Kenneth said to himself.

Gabby shakes her head at her strange co-worker. He always seems to be lost in his own happy world with no responsibility. As much as she wanted to act like that, the fear of being punished stops her from being as fun-loving as Kenneth. She wanted to ask him how he was able to keep such a care-free attitude, but the idea of Kenneth's victory dance made her cringe. She walks back to her work station and waits for Kenneth to return.

"Commander Shepard is some character… Tali too…" Kenneth said in his regular accent.

"Kenneth…" Gabby tried to sound angry, but it came off as a little tamer, too tame. "How are you able to stay so care-free?" She tried to ask as an accusation rather than a serious question.

"Simple Gabby… Everyone gets a warning from the commander before they are reprimanded. If I get a warning then I stop, simple. If they don't stop me, then I know that I can get away with it." Kenneth explained.

Gabby heard herself say. "That is an excellent philosophy…"

"What?" Kenneth asked.

"Nothing! Nothing." Gabby said, regaining her composure.

"You what I think I just figured out?" Kenneth said staring suspiciously at Gabby.

"What?" Gabby asked, easily adding in her patented seriousness.

"I think that one of these days we should go see a proper movie…" Kenneth explained.

"Who?" Gabby asked.

"You and me. But it has to be good movie…" Kenneth pondered.

_Does he like me?_ "Are you asking me out on a date?" Gabby asked.

_Does she like me? Wow! Wouldn't that be something. Gabby… Liking me… Like that would ever happen._ "Would it matter?" Kenneth asked.

_He does like me! Oh my god! What do I say? Just come down. Get a grip of herself Gabby. Kenneth still doesn't know your feelings toward him._ "Why not?" Gabby acted coy.

_This is a lot easier than all of those romance holo-vids that I watched! _"Then it will be a date!" Kenneth acted coy.

"Great!" Gabby practically yelled.

"Great!" Kenneth said immediately after Gabby's.

Shepard and Tali, with their hands laced together, stroll past the strange couple. Gabby nervously buries herself into the calibrations while Kenneth keeps an eye on them in the corner of his eye.

"The Commander is such a lady's man." Kenneth said.

"Maybe you should just follow him around all day and learn something." Gabby teased.

"Well I got a date with you didn't I?" Kenneth asked abruptly, but regretted quickly.

Gabby's face turns red at his obvious claim of liking her. She tries desperately to make it like he was messing with her, but how he avoided her eyes only proved it. _Me and Kenneth? No. He's just so… so… Kenneth-like, and I am responsible and hard working. He is simply too… too strange for you… Is he? Yes of course he is, but…_ Gabby shakes her head to snap out of the daze.

"It's not a date! We are just going to go see a movie!" Gabby yelled.

She returns to work with a flourish as does Kenneth, but they don't work long before they look at each other again, but they again shake it off.

Shepard and Tali stood outside of the engine room. Their conversation could best be described as plain and simple with nothing of interest. Tali talks with her hands, and Shepard listens. Shepard talks to her, and she nods. Shepard smiles and takes Tali in his arms before he leaves for the elevator. Tali stays in the hallway shifting the weight on her legs as she smiles merrily under her mask. Her hands fold behind her back as she coaxes her body to return to work, but she waited a moment later for Shepard to return. The hiss of the elevator affirmed that he had left.

She turns to the engineering door with memories of Shepard's glittering eyes and charming smile. Her cheeks burn with happiness. Upon entering the engineering room she turns to see that Eric had mastered the simple calibrations, a bright pupil that will eventually make an excellent engineer. For some odd reason, it reminds her of herself when her father sat with her each night describing the workings of an element zero drive core in detail. She remembered her fascination with the workings of it; she was six when she built her own from scratch; her father was proud.

Shepard looks around the elevator with brighter eyes. His optimistic view of Liara's well being clearly trumped over the death-bed scenario. The doors open at the crews quarters revealing a bustle of crew members, lunch time shift change. Shepard sits at the community table where many of the crew members shift uncomfortable at his presence. A disarming grin quickly puts their minds at rest, and they continue their jubilee.

A large dish is brought out to Shepard. He looks in the large dish to see a gumbo of some sort. The crew members look at him and chuckle under their breaths.

"Okay! What is this?" Shepard asked.

"Left-over Gumbo!" Gardner yelled from the kitchen.

"What left-over's are we talking about?" Shepard asked.

"Beans, pasta, fish, bread, and Asari squid!" Gardner yelled, proudly.

Shepard grabs a spoon and stirs the mass of stink. The crew members watch with interest. He lifts a spoonful and takes a whiff, cringes slightly. The crew members are about to laugh again, but Shepard quickly shoves the spoon in his mouth and chews on the crunchy pieces of Asari squid. The crewmembers are now the ones to cringe.

"Excellent work Gardner!" Shepard yelled, slamming in spoon back into the bowl to take another bite.

The crew watched in horror as spoonful after spoonful was shoved into Shepard's mouth. Their mouths hung loosely on their jaws as Gardner walked by with a refill pot.

"I see that all of you want some since all of your mouths are hung open like that!" Gardner teased.

Shepard laughs at the looks of the crewmen as another loud crunch radiates through the room. The crewman cringe in a wave. Shepard's second bowl is clean faster than the crewmembers can realize that he is done. Shepard pats his stomach playfully and cleans his teeth with a toothpick.

"Hats off to the cook!" Shepard yelled.

If Gardner's smile could get any bigger, the top part of his head would have fallen off. Shepard jumps to his feet and looks around at the shocked faces.

"I hope to see you working hard with full stomachs…" Shepard said, playfully taking his leave.


	48. Chapter 48: Truths Revealed

The hospital sat in a busy section of the metropolis on Illium. Shepard stared at the skyscraper behemoth of a hospital towering in front of him. The sheer size of the tower dwarfed in comparison's to Shepard's nervous optimism. Tali walked up beside him with an unbreakable gaze that through messages of hope and concern. Shepard looked at her briefly before he nodded to her and walked into the hospital with Garrus close behind.

The hospital was a bustle of Asari and salarian doctors and nurses. They didn't appear to be in a hurry, but the first room was more chaotic than the restrooms after Gardner's Surprise Gumbo. Shepard walked up to the front desk where an impatient Asari nurse fiddled through the varying phone calls on her headset and the paperwork that was laying in front of her. She looked up briefly a raised a finger for Shepard to wait.

"Good! The mechanic! Room 3A down the hall's holo-vid player is broken!" the secretary said looking at Tali.

Tali's eye twitched under her mask. A burning hate began to fill her, but before she could say nasty things to her Shepard chimed in.

"She's not the mechanic… She's my wife. We are here to see Liara T'Soni?" Shepard said easily hiding his anger at the busy woman.

"Liara T'Soni. Liara. Liara. Liara. Ah, yes! Liara T'Soni!" The woman said as she flipped through the patient directory. "Room…" She smiled. "3A, down the hall on the right." She looked at Tali as she laced her hands together and rested herself on her desk. "So could you…?"

"No…" Tali said, angrily.

She sighed. "What a shame…"

They walked down the hallway that led to Room 3A. Shepard, with his curious behavior, looked into each room he passed to see what was happening on Illium. 1A had a Salarian with a fork stuck in his head; 1B had an elcor with glitter in his eye; 1C had an Asari, that from what Shepard could see, couldn't sit straight; 2A had a pink Asari dancer; 2B was empty; 2C had a veil up so that people couldn't see the person laying in the bed, but from what Shepard could see, or at least guess, it was a Krogan.

3A seemed much more luxurious than the other rooms. Shepard walked into the room and looked immediately at the bed. Empty. He looked over at the room's balcony to see a table and a familiar head. Shepard smiled as he walked over to the door to the patio to find Liara sitting at a table on the balcony. She sipped at the tea or whatever they had given her to drink before she looked over to see who was visiting.

"Shepard!" Liara said, weakly. She tried to stand, but her body buckled under the strain and she gave up. "Forgive me that I cannot stand to greet you…" She said humbly.

"Don't strain yourself Liara. You are still very weak. We want you to rest and get back to your old self again." Shepard said.

"I won't be able to return completely…" Liara said, sullenly.

She moved the blanket that was keeping her warm to reveal a cane.

"The bullet clipped my spine… There won't be any severe effects, it's just that I am going to be stuck with a cane for the rest of my life…" Liara said, nervously shifting the stylish black cane in her hands.

"I'm sorry to hear that…" Shepard condoled.

"Yeah… So I hear that Vido is dead." Liara said, changing the subject.

"You get information fast." He almost laughed out.

"Well I had a source that was there." Liara said, smiling.

"There?" Shepard looked around. "We were the only ones there." Shepard said.

"Forget me already?" Came the strong and familiar voice of Krog from the doorway.

Shepard quickly turned to him, but found him buried in a double wrap of blood soaked bandages. One half of his face was covered in the bandages along with his chest, his arm was in a sling and his leg was in a cast, yet he still smiled and appeared to be ready to fight at any time. Garrus had never met the Krogan before, but from Shepard and Tali's reactions, he assumed that this was Krog that they kept talking about. Krog slowly limped into the room. A passing nurse came in to help him, but he brushed her off.

"So Shepard…" Krog plopped down on Liara's bed. Liara smiled slightly at him. "Your promise…"

"You can't be serious?" Shepard asked.

"I'm not… not yet, but I expect that fight one of these days Shepard. You and your beautiful wife, Mrs. Tali'Zorah are invited." Krog chuckled to himself before coughing quietly.

"Why do you want to kill me and Tali so bad?" Shepard asked.

"You are the hardest thing in the galaxy to kill! Why else? I was originally only after you, but luckily your wife graced me with her blade" He rubbed the scar on his neck. "And I simply had to take you both!" Krog laughed again.

Tali shifted her stare from Shepard and Krog. Both appeared to be in a gaze that, if broken, would erupt a fight that would leave one of them gasping for air on the ground. She didn't want the conflict to escalate, but she had to agree with Shepard on this one.

"Why can't you leave us alone?" Tali asked.

"Why didn't you leave the fate of your homeworld alone? It is because that is the thing that motivates people to live! I have no point in living if it wasn't for you and Shepard!" Krog laughed heartily and coughs. "I enjoy our games though we can never seem to finish them…"

"Krog…" Liara started.

"Liara! I didn't see you there! Come here and join the party!" Krog exclaimed his merry manner.

"Shepard…" Liara said, extending her hand out to him.

He grabbed her hand and helped her up to her shaky feet. The cane clanked against the tile flooring with soft cracks. Krog watched her as she made her way over to the bed. She sat down next to him and put her hands on his. Shepard looked at her hands and how she looked at Krog.

"Liara? Are you in love with him?" Shepard asked.

"What if I am?" Liara asked, defensively.

"We are best friends Liara, and he wants to kill me… Those seem reason enough to yes or no…" Shepard reasoned.

Liara had never told Krog and they had simply acted like they loved each other, but neither had out-right came out and said it; they believed it showed weakness. Liara stared deeply into Krog's eyes trying to make him say it first, but Krog only chuckled at her.

"Yes… Shepard…" Liara said without looking at him.

"You love someone who wants to kill me!" Shepard yelled.

"Yes, he wants to kill you, but he doesn't hate you Shepard. You are his hero! Can't you see that?" Liara said, rubbing her hand through a groove of a deep scar on his neck, Tali's cut.

"I see that Liara, but if he tries to kill me, I'm going to have to kill him!" Shepard told her.

"I know…" Liara said, smiling as she fell closer to Krog.

Shepard collected himself. _Now is not the time!_

"I'm sorry Liara. I didn't mean to… I'm happy for you…" Shepard struggled to say as Krog threw him another smile.

"I understand your hesitation Shepard." Liara said, finally turning to Shepard.

Shepard nodded a few times, feeling a bit out of place with Krog in the room. He decided that this was the best time to leave so he made his way to the door.

"Shepard!" Liara called after him.

"What?" Shepard asked, standing in the doorway.

"I just got some news about your mercenary, Zaeed Massani." Liara said, looking at her Omni-tool.

"Is he already making trouble?" Shepard asked, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

"Define trouble… He just reclaimed his title as head of the Blue Suns and is gathering a meeting with the other mercenary bands." Liara said, mechanically.

"Great…" Shepard said through his teeth, as he ran out the door.

He passed a quarian in the hall who seemed lost.

"Room on the right at the end of the hall!" He yelled as he pushed through the crowd. He didn't even see the quarian wave an unsure thank-you to him.

Much of the run over to the back alleys of Illium was aimless running around, but eventually Shepard gained his bearings and ran to a opening in the buildings. Zaeed and a group of Blue Suns mercenaries were about to board a shuttle by the time Shepard made it into the opening.

"Zaeed!" Shepard yelled.

Instantly, the mercenary guards turned their guns on him. Zaeed stepped out and put his hand on the one guards gun to drop it. The guards looked at him curiously, but turned back to Shepard, Tali, and Garrus just in case they pulled guns.

"What do you want Shepard?" Zaeed asked.

"What are you planning on doing?" Shepard asked.

"I'm taking back my rightful spot as leader of the Blue Suns… I thought you would know that Shepard." Zaeed said, rubbing his bandaged faced.

"What are the Blue Suns going to do when your in charge?" Shepard asked, again.

"What else Shepard? When the time comes for it, we are going to help you fight the Reapers, and I promise you that the mercenary groups will listen to me, and if they don't…" Zaeed tapped his rifle. "…they better be ready for a fight."

Shepard laughed. "Well I guess I'll be seeing you around then…"

"Maybe Shepard… I have a lot of work to do to clean up the mess that Vido made, but you can count us in on your Reaper battle." Zaeed said. "And Shepard… Some interesting news for ya… It turns out that the sniper that shot your Asari friend or whatever wasn't a Blue Suns Merc. In fact, he wasn't a merc at all… from the news that has been flowing through Illium lately, at least what my associates say, is that it was the Shadow Broker."

"An assassin?" Shepard asked.

"It would appear so…"

"But Vido…"

"He was just using it to make himself terrifying… like he was every…" Zaeed explained.

Shepard thought about it as the doors to Zaeed's shuttle closed. He quickly looked back at the shuttle, but he could only smile at the stubborn soldier. He waved, but figured that Zaeed wasn't watching. He turned back to Tali and Garrus who both gave him respectful nods. Shepard smiled and flipped open his Omni-tool as he walked. Entry: Shadow Broker.

The meeting place was dark and foggy. Pip never enjoyed going to these places, but he went wherever the Shadow Broker told him to go. He was to tell no one of these meetings, nor the location of such meetings which only made Pip more nervous. People believed that Pip the Psychotic Salarian was simply bipolar or schizophrenic, but no one knew the degree of his worries. Pip always appeared talking to himself as he walked, but few people ever noticed the space that he kept around him. No one ever noticed how he would glance over to nothing on his right, quickly straighten his view again and apologize.

The Shadow Broker saw this opportunity in Pip, the perfect messenger. The Shadow Broker bet that even if Pip talked no one would believe him and that only the receiver would be the believer of the message which was equally wrapped up in a code that would quickly make the most suspicious people doubt the liability of Pip's info.

Pip sat nervously at the prearranged chair that had been set up. He shook like a leaf, looking in every direction, trying to catch the Shadow Broker's face or at least it's species. He looked to the right. He looked to the left. Right. Left. Pip felt the strong familiar hands of the Shadow Broker, or at least from what he could tell belonged the Shadow Broker, wrap tightly around his shoulders. His body ceased to shake, but his heart fluttered like a terrified moth.

"The Messenger is to send the message: 'Asari delicacies are of Turian delight. Turians find Humans Enjoyable, but Humans Object to the Salarian's Proposals. Interject! Turians and Asari are in Love.' The message is to be sent accordingly to these coordinates. If you speak, you will die. If you hint, you will die. If you run, we will find you. If you are late, you are expendable." and just like that the pressure disappeared.

Pip quickly turned around, but the figure had melted into the fog around him, encroaching, suffocating, satiating. Pip quickly stood, rubbed his hands together and left. The airways of Illium were exceptionally busy today from Pip's view, so he decided to walk instead.


	49. Chapter 49: The Broker

Shepard walked through the alleys of Illium looking for something. He still didn't quite know what, but he was sure that the under-streets of Illium would provide it. He rounded a corner and was quickly knocked off-balance by a twitchy, nervous Salarian.

"Hey! Are you okay?" Shepard asked, offering him a hand.

The Salarian quickly crawled away from him and jumped to his feat.

"I can't talk to you! Not you! Anybody but you! They are watching! They are everywhere… everywhere! Always watching. Always! But I'm fine. I don't talk. I'm fine! Safe! Secure! Salarian! Yes…" The strange Salarian sputtered as he tried to run away.

Shepard caught him by his shoulder and dragged him back to face him.

"Who are they?" Shepard inquired curiously.

"The Mysterious Beings. They tell Pip things. I tell others. Things happen, but no one listens. I listen! They don't! No. But They are always watching! They are always listening! Pip afraid for life… must go." Pip stuttered off.

"Hold on. Hold on. The Mysterious Beings? You mean the Reapers?" Shepard asked, at a loss.

"Reapers? What are Reapers? No. No. No. Dark always following you. Stuck to your feet. Never letting go…" Pip said, trying to pull away from Shepard.

"The Shadow Broker?" Shepard asked.

Pip's breathing quickened. "No one listens! No one sees! Call me crazy! Call Pip crazy! I'm not crazy! No. Just a rouse. A deterrent to protect the messenger." Pip said, quickly flipping his eyes around the surrounding buildings, waiting to die.

"What message were you given?" Shepard asked, noticing Pip's collapse of self confidence.

"Asari delicacies are of Turian delight. Turians find Humans Enjoyable, but Humans Object to the Salarian's Proposals. Interject! Turians and Asari are in Love!" Pip said, quickly.

In Shepard's confusion at the message, Pip managed to break free and run down the alley. He quickly vanished in the crowd of low-life bums blocking the next alley way.

"He's insane Shepard… I wouldn't listen to him…" Garrus said.

"The message…" Shepard said to himself.

"It doesn't make any sense!" Garrus said, almost angrily.

"Shh…" Shepard interrupted, lifting his finger.

" 'Asari delicacies are of Turian delight. Turians find Humans Enjoyable, but Humans Object to the Salarian's Proposals. Interject! Turians and Asari are in Love!'…" Shepard repeated to himself.

"Shepard…" Tali tried to say.

"Just let me think about it…" Shepard said.

"No… I think I have an idea…" Tali said.

"Both of you are crazy… you know that right? Is that why you two married each other?" Garrus teased.

"We should write it down…" Tali suggested.

"What's your idea?" Shepard asked.

"You'll see… If it works, that is…" Tali said, grabbing Shepard's hand.

Garrus shook his head and followed the crazy couple. They walked into a small pub and grabbed a napkin. Tali pulled a writing instrument from her pocket and looked at the napkin. She shrugged and gave the writing instrument to Shepard.

"You write it…" Tali said, embarrassedly.

Shepard grabbed the napkin away from her and wrote the message.

"Shepard… We are wasting time on this. You just stopped a crazy guy and he rattles off some crazy sentences and you instantly believe him… This isn't like you…" Garrus said.

"Drink sir?" the barmaid asked, a quite ravishing young Asari with a beautiful smile.

"No thank you… I'm busy…" Shepard said, staring at the scribbles on the napkin.

"I'll take a Turian Ale…" Garrus said, exasperated.

"I'll have one too." Tali said.

The bartender looked at her curiously. "Umm… Ma'am… we don't have any Quarian suit transfer units nor do we have any liquid purification stations…" The young Asari said sadly.

"Just get me a cup of Turian Ale then…" Tali said, sliding closer to Shepard to see the napkin.

She had never seen the human language written before. She found it quite beautiful, bordering on artistic. She thought about learning 'English', but the with the use of instant speech learning programs, it would be impossible to read English. She found the concept of instant translation data-pads to be a hindrance to other species. What if she wanted to learn the intricacies of the English letter 'G'. She wondered how her name would look written out in English. She wondered how artistic and unique it would look. She sighed and tried to focus on the task at hand first.

"Tali. Write the message down under mine." Shepard said.

"I can't write in English…" Tali said, sadly.

"Not in English, in Quarian." Shepard corrected.

She wrote the message down as best she could. It had been awhile since she had written anything manually before. Shepard watched as Tali completed the sloping curves the Quarian language. He found the language to be exceptionally beautiful. He could bet that it bordered the intricacies of the Japanese language back on Earth, be he couldn't be sure.

"Now Garrus. You write the message." Shepard commanded.

"I don't see the relevance of this…" Garrus said, as he scribbled the jagged language of turian on the napkin.

Shepard looked at the napkin and smiled.

"What did you find?" Tali asked.

"What do you see?" Shepard asked, turning the napkin around for all to see.

Tali stared at it for a few seconds, but she shrugged. Garrus looked briefly, but he still doubted the source of the information too much to take it seriously.

"Look." Shepard began to make circles around the letters and characters of the written work. "Now what do you see?" Shepard asked.

"A-T-T-H-E-H-O-S-P-I-T-A-L?" Tali asked.

"What does that spell?" Shepard asked.

"At the hospital? At the hospital!" Tali squealed.

"It's the same in all three languages…" Shepard said.

"What do they want at the…" Tali began to ask.

"Liara…" Shepard whispered to himself.

He quickly jumped up and ran out the door almost knocking over the barmaid.

Garrus grabbed his drink and downed it quickly. He passed his hand through his Omni-tool, paying the bill and giving a large tip. Tali too grabbed her drink. The barmaid looked at her as she grabbed the outside of her visor and downed the ale. The barmaid's mouth almost hit the floor as Tali threw her a generous smile and s small wave as she ran out the bar. The bar maid dropped the metal plate that was holding the cups.

"Neyti! What was that?" roared the bar owner.

"A quarian just took her mask off!" Neyti yelled.

"Make sure the cops don't see the body! I'm sick of people thinking that they can simply commit suicide in my bar and it won't hurt my business. Damn selfish people! Why can't they kill themselves at their own homes?" roared the bar owner.

* * *

Pip ran into the small dark room that the coordinates pointed to.

"Did he get the message?" the familiar voice asked.

"He sent me here. Why do you want message you gave me?" Pip asked.

"Did you give John H. Shepard the message?" The voice asked.

"I don't know who that is!" Pip yelled.

"The man you ran into in the alleyway… Did you give him the message?" the voice asked.

"I didn't mean to! He threatened me! He knows! He listened to me! No one listens to Pip! I-I-I'm sorry!" Pip cried.

"You have done your job Pip. You have done it perfectly. We will not be needing your services any longer." The voice said.

"Please… no…" Pip said, stepping back to the door.

The door closed before he could get out of the dark room.

* * *

Shepard ran back into the hospital. The secretary at the desk smiled at him and waved, but Shepard had already began to make his way down the hall to Liara's room. Tali and Garrus ran in later. The secretary behind the desk pointed them to the right where they found Shepard knock over a rack full of white clothes.

"Shepard!" Tali and Garrus yelled running at him.

Shepard ran into the room, which was dark. The door closed and everything became silent. Shepard flipped the small light on his suit and looked around the eerily dark room.

"Liara?" Shepard asked walking slowly in the room.

He pulled his pistol from its holster and scanned the room's corners and crevices. He saw Liara laying in her bed. He briskly took two steps forward to her, but he slowly became aware of the dark clocked figure standing over the bed. Shepard lifted his gun at the figure.

"Stay away from her!" Shepard yelled.

"What makes you think I'm after her?" a disembodied voice said.

"Then who are you…? Shepard started.

The figure turned to Shepard.

"You, John H. Shepard, Commander of the SS Normandy SR2, destroyer of Sovereign, destroyer of the Collectors, First Human Spectre. You who are married to the quarian Tali'Zorah nar Rayya vas Normandy, prominent member of the quarian people, best mechanic the galaxy will ever see, pregnant with a hybrid child…" the voice continued.

"Pregnant?" Shepard asked, at a loss for words.

"She has not told you yet, but her private message to the Migrant Fleet said she was. Nerves… they tend to make people… nervous." the voice answered.

"Are you the Shadow Broker?" Shepard asked, his gun still raised.

"You already know the answer to that Commander Shepard…" the voice answered.

"What do you want from me?" Shepard asked.

"I want information… I need an accomplice to get the data I need…" the Shadow Broker said with a voice that was neither male nor female; quarian nor turian. It was neither and all of them.

"What information do you need?" Shepard asked.

"Reapers… Protheans… History… Technology…" The shadow Broker said.

"I don't have that…" Shepard said.

"Yes you do… Its all in your head… All of it and I want it…" The Shadow Broker said.

"But how am I going to give you that?" Shepard asked.

"That is your challenge." It said.

And just like that the figure disappeared and the lights flickered back on. The door to the room opened to reveal Tali and Garrus running in the room.

"Shepard!" Tali yelled again.

"The Shadow Broker was here…" Shepard said to her.

Liara roused in her bed slightly, completely unharmed.

"We just missed him then?" Garrus asked.

" 'Just'? We were talking for almost five minutes! Where were you guys?" Shepard asked angrily.

"Shepard we were right behind you… The door just closed before we got in here, and we find you standing in here like you saw something. " Garrus explained.

Shepard thought about it. I guess the Shadow Broker is shadier than I thought.

"I can promise you that he was in here! He told me some interesting things." Shepard said, looking directly at Tali.

"It's impossible that you had a full conversation with him in that time zone…" Garrus started again.

"Tali… When were you going to tell me that you were pregnant?" Shepard asked.

Tali's body quickly tightened at the mention of that word.

"How do you know about that Shepard?" Tali asked in disbelief.


	50. Chapter 50: The Eye of the Storm

"I was going to tell you Shepard… I was just a bit… nervous about it." Tali said, shifting her weight around nervously, hands rubbing.

"I'm not mad at you Tali. I was simply trying to show you that I was in here longer than you thought I was." Shepard said, taking a step towards Tali.

"I-I… Shepard…" Tali hugged Shepard, burying her head in his chest.

Shepard held her tight and rubbed the gentle curves of her sloping back. Tali continued to shift legs uncomfortably, but they slowly became more relaxed the longer she was held. She pulled her head slightly back from his body and looked up at him. She took his hand and placed it on her stomach and rubbed it with his hand. Shepard could feel Tali's breathing strain as she fought back the tears of relief.

"It's ours Shepard… A family…" Tali buried her head back into his chest and cried softly.

Shepard could even feel the tears of happiness mist his eyes and cloud his vision. The thought of this child to come, his child, Tali's child, was relieving. It made him forget about the Reapers, the Shadow Broker, Liara, Krog, Garrus, and the Illusive Man. No one existed except them two standing in the fields of Rannoch.

Garrus looked at the touching discovery, but he decided to investigate the room for some sign of the Shadow Broker. He searched around Liara's bed, the patio, the vents, and the couch, but nothing was there. If the Shadow Broker was there, whatever it is didn't even leave a trace. Garrus angrily searched the room, but there was simply nothing in that room.

"I can't find anything Shepard… If anyone was here, they clean up good." Garrus said, scanning a shoe for any trace amounts of energy or whatever the Shadow Broker leaves, but nothing came up in that room.

"It was almost like he stopped time…" Shepard said, finally releasing Tali, but their hands were still laced together, their bonds together in each other's hands.

"That's impossible Shepard. That technology doesn't exist!" Garrus protested.

"Garrus… You seem like your in a bad mood. What's wrong?" Shepard asked.

"Nothing Commander… Nothing. I'm just tired of all this. Mercenaries, life-death situations, Shadow Brokers, marriage, and pregnancy, it's just a bit much without a whole lot of downtime in-between. I knew that serving with you would be rough, but this is just exhausting." Garrus said.

"You could have stayed at the ship and rested, Garrus. I wouldn't mind if you refused." Shepard said,

"One day isn't enough, I need a full length vacation…" Garrus said, chuckling slightly.

Shepard smiled and walked over and patted Garrus on the back.

"Don't worry… The mercenaries are taken care of and the Shadow Broker is being… reasonable, for the most part. Eventually you will get that three week shore leave to whichever planet you want." Shepard promised, with a wink.

"I would like that Shepard… Suicide missions are getting kind of old." Garrus said rubbing his head.

"Back Shepard?" came Krog's voice.

"Yes… Krog. I'm back." Shepard said turning around to see the mummy wrapped Krogan.

"And your wife…" Krog said, lifting Tali's hand and kissing it.

Tali didn't know if she should be disgusted, offended, humbled or all three at the Krogan. She decided to stay quiet.

"So you talk to your mercenary friend… what's his name? Zada? Zeeda?" Krog asked.

"Zaeed…" Shepard corrected.

"That's the guy!" Krog laughed. "I like him! I might have to join the Blue Suns just to serve under him." Krog laughed again.

"The Shadow Broker was here…" Shepard said.

Krog's face instantly fell into what Shepard could best describe as afraid. For once in his life he appeared truly afraid of the situation and at a loss for words.

"Sh-Shadow Broker? Here?" Krog asked, looking around the room like he was still in the room.

Shepard nodded. Krog ran over to Liara and sat on her bed and put his hands on her cheeks. She softly woke up and looked at him.

"Krog? What are you doing?" Liara asked looking into the scarred Krogan's eyes.

"Just making sure you're okay…" Krog said.

Shepard and Tali stood in what best could be described as a total awe at the pure shock of Krog being sentimental and worried. Maybe they didn't understand how powerful the Shadow Broker really is. Garrus leaned in to them as they watched Krog rub Liara's cheeks softly.

"I think this would be the best time to go…" Garrus said. They were gone before Krog even realized it.

* * *

The Normandy felt like the only safe haven from the Shadow Broker, now that he had apparently taken interest in Shepard. Shepard sat in his room and stared at his personal computer. Tali sat on the couch and poked at the prothean jelly ball; it always made her feel at ease. Shepard wanted to communicate to the Shadow Broker, but the idea of talking to someone that people didn't even think existed seemed impossible, but he decided to try something. He wrote a simple message labeled to the Shadow Broker and sent it out to no where.

He walked away from his computer and walked over and sat on the couch next to Tali. She slid herself onto his lap and rubbed her hand up is arm.

"I always love playing with this thing!" Tali said, happily.

"It is very interesting…" Shepard said staring at her and not the ball.

"_Interesting_…" Tali said.

"You know I love it when you say that word like that…" Shepard said, rubbing his hand up Tali's stomach. Tali giggled at Shepard and looked at him rub her stomach.

"_Interesting_…" Tali said again.

Shepard grabbed her sides causing her to squeal with laughter as he tickled her through her suit.

"That's not fair Shepard!" Tali squeezed through the laughs.

The tickling caused Tali to slump further down into the couch. Shepard slowly moved his way up her and almost had his hands around her visor, but the beep of his personal computer broke the mood. Shepard sighed as he rose from Tali who miserably buckled the bottom of her suit up again.

Shepard looked at the computer to find an anonymous message:

_Shepard, Hello. Amazingly you Deciphered my message, And We are happy to do Business with you. Respectfully, Other issues arise and Knowledge is Everything. _

_Respectfully…_

Shepard felt relieved and at ease with this new message. He had found a way to communicate to the Shadow Broker and it appeared the Shadow Broker was friendly, for the most part though Shepard has seen what he was capable of doing. He thought about typing another message, but the change in the music made him look over at his bed.

Tali was laying under the covers, suit on the floor. The smile on her face was a warm welcoming call for him to join her, and if that wasn't enough, she patted the side of the bed. Shepard smiled at her and walked across the length of the room. In that small walk he managed to take off his shirt and his shoes. The rest of the clothes fell apart in Tali's capable hands.

* * *

Pip groggily came out of the dark room that he had woke up in. He couldn't remember anything, but he could have sworn that he had seen something important. He looked up at the sky and around the alleyways. For once in his life, his brain seemed to piece everything together. He felt an overwhelming large knowledge in his head now as he walked from the dark room. He instantly walked past the police official that always gave him hell.

"Top of the morning Officer…" Pip heard himself say.

"Good day to you too Pip…" the officer said, taken aback at the civility that Pip was now exhibiting.

Pip almost cried at his luck. He didn't know who to thank. He never did figure out who was in that room with him, but whoever it was cured him. Pip felt the spring in his step as he walked through the alleyways that didn't seem as dark before. He was free. He felt the pressure of an always watching entity had left him. If he could sing, he would break out in song at that very moment.

* * *

Garrus walked over to Miranda who was combing her hair. He stretched his old back and looked at her and smiled.

"So did you hear? Tali's pregnant…" Garrus said.

Miranda stopped brushing her hair and looked up at him.

"I guess they are going to go through with it…" Miranda said.

Garrus stared at her. Miranda quickly picked up on the meaning of his stare and looked at him with sad eyes.

"I don't want to start anything… Not now Garrus… We still have each other, and that is what matters."

Garrus sighed and walked over to the closet and unclipped his heavy armor. His rugged scarred skin and rough armored turian skin were almost muscles on his body from how Miranda looked at it. She stood up and walked over and placed her hands around his neck and rubbed them. Garrus quickly became relaxed and sighed with approval.

"You need to relax! You know that Miranda said, giving him her disarming smile. He wrapped his arms around her and they fell onto the bed.

* * *

Joker sat at the helm staring out at the vastness of space.

"Hey EDI?" Joker asked.

"Yes Jeff?" EDI asked.

"Do you know and good jokes?" Joker asked.

"What do you call parachuting Council members?" EDI asked.

"Skeet… I've heard that one… I've got a classic! Okay! So two peanuts are walking down the street. One is a salted… … … peanut…" Joker laughed.

"A simple play of words Jeff?" EDI asked.

"Hey it's a classic!" Joker yelled.

"You mean it's old…" EDI said.

"Haha… That one was almost funny…" Joker said sarcastically.

"That was a joke…" EDI said.

"I know. I know." Joker said.

* * *

The dark shadow of the Shadow Broker moved through the fog of the planet. It moved without stepping like it didn't have legs. It walked to an area of the small courtyard, and simply vanished into the fog.

He stood over Tali and Shepard's bed staring down at the sleeping couple at the same time that he was looking down at Garrus and Miranda. He could see all of them. He was everywhere. He was also watching Pip and Liara back on Illium. His eyes were everywhere and his power was unmatched. He turned around in Shepard's room and typed on his computer before he vanished from existence. His plan was going according to the predictability of Shepard, and soon, Shepard would be his.

* * *

Mordin sat in his lab processing the last run of tissue samples from quarians and humans. The water of Pragia only ceased to amaze him at its unique quality of DNA neutralization. He continued to wait for any long term effects that could arise from the paring of such tissues while he tinkered with his newest side experiment, Salarian Life Extension. Mordin was already older than most Salarians, and he knew that he was old, but he was not going to let old age drag him down. He took the Salarian tissue sample from its container and injected it with the serum. The cells became rejuvenated. Mordin smiled.

He wanted to immediately inject himself with the next extension to his life, but he wanted to run further tests on it… just in case. If he did not plan this perfectly, he could easily shave off the rest of his time that he had left to live which he wasn't overly fond of doing. He wanted to bring up his problem to Shepard, but Mordin felt that he had to keep this secret to himself. Shepard would understand.

* * *

Ken and Gabby sat in the crew's quarters watching a romantic tale of drell and a hanar princess. Kenneth laughed through most of the movie. Gabby laughed almost as hard as Ken. She didn't even realize that she had placed her hand on his before it was too late. Her face turned bright red as she felt his hand. She looked over at Kenneth who smiled happily at her.

"Why, hello there Gabby!" Kenneth said.

Gabby pulled her hand away from him and broke the stare between them. She decided to focus completely on the movie.

"…the Enkindlers are here for us both, my love."

"This One finds the situation most disagreeable… Hold this One…" the Hanar princess said.

Kenneth began to roll on the ground with laughter. Gabby held back her laughs at the ridiculousness of Kenneth on the floor. She wondered why she hid her laughs. She wondered why diverted from his gaze. She hated Love, but she loved Kenneth.

* * *

Krog opened a small data pad and clicked on the 32-digit pass code. Shepard's position was quickly revealed as what appeared to be a satellite following him. Krog smiled to himself as he looked at Shepard and Tali's pictures that were clearly labeled 'For the Hunt' and 'to the death'. Krog wanted nothing more than to either kill or be killed by Shepard. He obsessed with both feelings. He could feel the warm blood from Shepard's neck drip on his hands as the blade cut into him at the same time he could feel the sharp pain of an incendiary bullet smash into his chest and burn his organs.

Krog looked at the time that the nurses had estimated the time for his recovery. Three more days remained for the broken leg. Everything else he could deal with. Shepard's head was to be his. Krog even promised himself that if the time came to it, He would kill a Reaper by himself to get to Shepard. He laughed at how determined he was.

"You will be mine Shepard…" Krog said with a smile.

Krog's smile faded as he brought up another entry.

"Shadow Broker had better not get in my way either."


	51. Chapter 51: The Storm Begins

Shepard's mind filled with images of the hooded figure; a figure that knew all that was to know about everyone; a figure that was everywhere at once. His dreams vividly displayed his fears in the most minute details.

_Shepard walked down a corridor of Omega. No one was around. No Vorcha were grouped together. No mercenaries plotting a raid. Everything was still and empty. Shepard's steps were also muffled making the eerily quiet hall even creepier. A sound of a pin drop amplified almost three hundred times filled the air. It instantly immobilized Shepard as he pressed his hands against his ears to stop the pain._

_Shepard fell to his knees, struggling with the ear- breaking ring. He lowered his head. The sound vanished. He looked up to see Tali standing at most five feet from him. Her mask was off so he could see the radiant beauty of that smiling face sooth his troubled soul. He reached out to her and said her name, but the ring in his ears prevented him from hearing his own words._

_Shepard's eyes widened as a cloaked figure materialized from the surrounding air behind Tali. He screamed out for her to turn around, but that split second where her face turned terrified and her body trying to turn only made the result worse. Shepard watched in horror as a jagged blade exploded out of the front of Tali's stomach. From what he could see of the cloaked figure, he was smiling and enjoying his kill._

_Shepard tried to rise and run at the murderer, but the sound still had him disoriented. He stumbled forwards just enough to grab her feet and look up at the wet, bloody blade that protruded from her stomach. The look of shock on Tali's face as she looked down at the blade only made Shepard avert his eyes. Why? Why? Why?_

_Her body swayed forwards as the cloaked figure pushed the blade deeper sending droplets of blood onto Shepard's face. Warm and thick. Shepard felt the tears in his eyes break as he tried to say something to her, but the words were stopped by a lump in his throat. Tali grabbed the blade with her hands, helplessly trying to prevent the assailant from pushing it any deeper in her._

_Shepard felt the strength return to him as his sadness quickly became a raging anger. He quickly rose and lunged a flying fist at the man who simply faded from existence at the fist. He materialized a few feet down the hall. Shepard ran at him and gave a yell of anguish as he tried to bring another heavy fist into the man's face. He simply faded again._

"_I am knowledge Shepard… To fight me is Ignorance… Knowledge is the most powerful tool used by rulers. It is the most used currency. It is international, intergalactic, interspecies. It is everywhere. Whoever controls the knowledge, controls the people. People believe what they are told. Humans believed in God because it is knowledge. Asari believe in the Goddess because it is knowledge. Drell believe in their gods because it is knowledge. The Earth is flat because that is knowledge just as it is round because of knowledge. We believe… what we know… even if its wrong because we sometimes just don't… know." the Shadow Broker said, chuckling slightly._

"_Why are you doing this?" Shepard asked._

_He looked back at Tali who had fallen over. She was laying on the ground. Motionless. Quietly. Painfully. Shepard could see the handle of the decorated dagger sticking from her back._

"_Why?" Shepard yelled at him._

"_Why. Why. Why. The question of my trade." chuckles, "Because when there is opportunity you take it. What I have done was make you believe. I have altered your knowledge. I am knowledge Shepard. I am simply an… idea… remember that…" The Shadow Broker said._

"_Why did you kill her!" Shepard pleaded._

"_Who said I did? You did…" The Shadow Broker smiled._

_No I-" Shepard started._

_He looked down at his hands to see the bloody decorated dagger in his blood covered hand. He stared at the impossible thing before he looked up at the smiling man._

"_But…" Shepard said._

"_Beliefs… Ideas… Evidence… They are… tangible. I need you to do something Shepard…" The Shadow Broker said._

"_What more do you want from me?" Shepard asked, looking down at the dagger in disbelief._

"_I want you to wake up Shepard… Shepard! Wake up!" his voice slowly began to sound more and more like Tali's voice. "Shepard you have to wake up!"_

_He looked back to where Tali was laying, but she was gone. He looked back at the hooded figure. The hooded figure removed the hood to reveal Tali underneath._

"_Shepard! Wake Up!"_

Shepard quickly jumped out of his bed. Tali was tossed to the side from the force that Shepard had jumped. Shepard breathe quickly as he tried to figure out his surroundings. He wiped the drenching sweat that had soaked almost ninety percent of his clothes off of his face before he looked at Tali who was staring at him, terrified.

"Shepard…?" Tali asked.

"It was just a dream… A dream…" Shepard whispered to himself as he collected himself.

"Shepard…" Tali said before she collapsed to the floor.

"Tali?" Shepard yelled as he jumped over to see her laying on the floor with her knife sticking out of her shoulder.

Shepard felt the air begin to escape his lungs. He quickly jumped up and hit the intercom button.

"Chakwas! Mordin! Get up here now! There's been an accident!" Shepard yelled into the intercom.

He couldn't believe how real that dream was now becoming. He hated himself. How could he have fallen for it. He ran over to Tali's side, tears building in his eyes.

"Shepard… It was an accident… Don't beat yourself…" she takes a deep breath in, "…up about it." Tali said.

"Knowledge Shepard…" came a familiar and impossible voice.

Shepard quickly turned to see the hooded figure standing in his room with that same smile on his face that constantly cycled through different species. It started out human, but quickly faded to salarian. His face was blurred from the changing of the species and races.

"An idea becomes reality… remember that…" He said before fading.

The door to the room opened and Chakwas and Mordin came into the room to find Tali with a knife in her shoulder repeating that is was an accident. Shepard watched as they carried her away; she reached out to him; he reached for her. He quickly walked over to his computer to find a new message from the Shadow Broker.

_Don't worry about Tali'Zorah vas Normandy… You missed everything important, and she will easily pull through, but I will say that the mental scars that you will have will last longer than her scar. When you are ready to give me that information, meet me in the cargo bay._

Shepard slowly felt his fist clench. He started to wonder how he was going to beat someone that had almost taken two of his crewmembers away, one being his wife, without barely lifting a finger. He now could see why Krog was afraid. He is impossible. Impossible in everyway. Impossible to explain. Impossible to conceive. He was everything… No… He is an idea. Shepard's mind slowly began to piece the puzzle together. He was making this up. He was seeing the Shadow Broker how the Shadow Broker wanted him to see him. He was making him believe what he wanted him to believe. He was bending the facts and the ideas.

Shepard quickly got dressed and punched the button for the engineering deck. The doors hissed open and Shepard walked over to the door to the main cargo bay. He walked into the middle of it. He was neither angry nor afraid of him anymore.

"Shepard…" came the voice.

"Who are you?" Shepard demanded.

"Me? I am everything. Your human writer, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, portrayed me quite well as Moriarty. The salarian book, The Mysterium, portrays me as the evil mastermind, Glanth. Krogans have passed down tails of a genius among the Krogan people. One that betrays the people and condemns them to death. The quarians used to believe in me, but they have out-grown those beliefs. I'm just a fairy tale now. Asari have me as an Ardat-Yakshi. All of them have me wrong. I new name was created for me when I decided to get some 'helpers'. Shadow Broker they called me. I like it. It's catchy." The Shadow Broker went on.

"Who are you?" Shepard asked.

"That is one piece of information that I do not know anymore. I am the Shadow Broker." It explained.

"What do you want?" Shepard asked calmly.

"I want information. I have told you this Shepard." It explained.

"But why?" Shepard asked.

"Why. Why. Why. That is the question of my trade." It said before smiling.

Shepard wanted to cringe, but he held it back.

"Why do you want information?" Shepard asked, again.

"Simple. I desire power. Guns are powerful, but they do not think. Friends are foes and foes are friends. Whatever they point at it kills. Knowledge knows who to trust and for how long. It tells you when it is time to expend them. It tells you when they have become too close. It holds the gun." It smiled.

"How would I give the information that's in my head?" Shepard asked.

"Look at you! All filled with questions. It's simple. Just let me into her head, and I'll take what I want and be on my way.

Shepard stared at the strangely happy man. He waited for a better explanation, but he knew that he held no strings in this conversation.

"How are you going to get inside me head?" Shepard asked.

"Just relax..." He said, slowly walking over to him with his gloved hands outstretched, one hand had three fingers, the other had five.

"What are you-?" Shepard started to say, but the touch of the Shadow Broker's hands on his head ripped him into his own mind.

The world was scorched with a burning dust cloud whipping around them. The Shadow Broker looked around smiling at the barren wasteland. It laughed at the sand dunes and the scorched atmosphere. It outstretched its arms and spun in the heat of the mind.

"John H. Shepard. I am impressed! You have quite a bit of information in here, but I will keep my promise. I am only after the prothean and reaper information." The Shadow Broker said.

It walked over to a small indent in the sand and reached down and pulled out a glowing stream of data. Images of protheans being transformed into hideous collectors ravaged the broken memory. The distant murmur of the prothean language echoed in the memory. Shepard could understand it, but from what he could tell, the Shadow Broker couldn't understand it. He almost had to smile that he held the edge over that piece of information.

"Happy are we?" The Shadow Broker asked.

"About what?" Shepard asked, acting innocent.

"That I can't understand prothean..." It said. "Don't worry... I will know it soon enough..."

With just a flick of his wrist, he pulled the data stream apart making an exact copy of it. Shepard watched it disintegrate into his hand. He breathed out as though he was refreshed.

"That was all that I required of you Shepard..." It said.

"You mean that's it?" Shepard asked. "You almost killed two people for that?" Shepard roared, losing his temper.

"I had to test you... see if you were strong enough..." It said.

"Strong enough for what?" Shepard asked angrily.

"For my services..." The Shadow Broker said.

"Your services?"

"You may or may not know this, but I control an army of data collectors, and from this knowledge you have given me, I know the extent of the situation. You will need my help Shepard if you want this galaxy to be saved from the Reapers."

"Why should I trust you?"

"You are just going to have to believe me..."

And just like that Shepard was standing back in the cargo bay. A data pad sat on the box in front of him. He picked it up and looked at it curiously. He activated it and a flood of information filled the screen. The flood of letters and numbers quickly ended with a single beeping message. "We'll be there..."

Shepard smiled to himself as he looked over the words. He quickly frowned again as he remembered what awaited him in the medical bay. The Shadow Broker wanted Shepard to fear him, but he wasn't going to show it. He stared defiantly at the spot that the Shadow Broker had just stood. He knew that no matter where he looked he was going to be looking directly into its all-knowing eyes.

"I'm not afraid of you..." Shepard said.

Shepard walked back to the door that hissed open. He could have sworn that the hiss sounded like "You should..."

Tali sat in the medical bay. Luckily the antibiotics that she had filled her body with the night before were still keeping her up and about without her suit though she was exceedingly embarrassed. Shepard walked into the room, guiltily averting his eyes from Tali who looked at him pleadingly to forgive himself. He rubbed the back of his head before he finally looked up into her eyes, but the blood-stained bandage that was wrapped around her shoulder quickly stole his gaze.

"Tali I-" He started.

"Shepard. I know it was the Shadow Broker. He was in my dreams too. He told me that I had to wake you up. That I had to save you before he took over your mind." Tali explained.

"It set it all up then... It's a dangerous one, but happily it is on our side now." Shepard said with a bit more confidence.

"It's on our side? Good! I don't want it to split us up. This..." Tali motioned over to her bandaged shoulder, "...was cutting it close." She gave a small smile.

"I'm glad you're okay..." Shepard said, wrapping his arms around Tali and burying his head on her shoulder. She cringed at first, but it felt good after awhile. She used her one arm to wrap around him, the other hurt too much. Garrus walked in to find Tali and Shepard hugging. He stared in awe at Tali's face. His mandible twitched slightly.

"Garrus?" Tali said, looking embarrassed at him. She quickly moved her head to the other side of Shepard's head.

Shepard looked over at Garrus; he threw a couple of 'please leave' faces. Garrus turned around to leave, but looked back one last time at Tali's bright blue hair. Shepard put his hand into Tali's hair and rubbed her head, comfortably.

"Tali. You are going to have to be less shy around people. They would like to know what you look like." Shepard said.

"I know it's just I wanted to keep it a secret between us. A gift from me to you. A gift of myself..." Tali said.

"I understand..." Shepard said squeezing her tight. "Hopefully we can get you back to my quarters without anyone seeing you." Shepard teased.

Tali tightened at the mention of the distance to travel. She was fine showing off at strangers, but these were the people she worked with, people she would see again, people who tried to talk to her at the dinner table. She didn't want that. She breathed out at the idea and rubbed her sore shoulder.

"That was one rough night Shepard..." Tali hinted, making a joke out of the situation.

"It sure was..." Shepard teased back, pressing his face closer to hers.

They both laughed from their jokes. Chakwas sighed as she walked around the bed and stuck a syringe into Tali's arm.

"Go get a room you two. The med-bay is not a hotel..." Chakwas said.

"Sorry doctor..." Shepard said.

"It's fine as long as the touching stays to a kid-safe level Shepard. If not, then you are going to have drag her up to your room." Chakwas said.

"I might need help doctor." Shepard teased.

"I'm sorry commander, but my college days are over in that department, but I can give you a thorough prostate exam..."

"No thanks... I don't think I'm quite old enough yet to have that done."

"Suit yourself Commander, I am an expert."


	52. Chapter 52: Recovery

In a feat of pure discretion, Shepard managed to sneak Tali all the way back up to his room so she could dress in peace. Shepard walked around the bed and smiled to himself, glad that she was okay and that no serious harm had been done when he saw the blood still on the floor. He cringed at the sight when the flood of negative memories began to pour over him. He quickly pulled out a rag from one of the side cupboards and promptly wiped it up, the rag was thrown in the trash chute.

Tali's helmet sealed shut as the visor pressurized around the helmet, her eyes shifted to the sides a few times as her eyes reset to the dim-lit visor setting. She turned to Shepard and smiled under her mask as she stepped up to him, her arm in a sling to reduce accidental pain from unconscious arm swinging. She held Shepard close with her one hand. The warmth and pressure of Shepard's embrace was so familiar and safe. Shepard breathed in deeply before he began.

"Tali? How long until you have the baby?" Shepard asked.

Tali was taken aback from the blunt, straightforward question. "Uhm… around ten months…" Tali said.

"That's a little longer than a human pregnancy…" Shepard said, looking into her eyes.

Tali's eyes shifted between both of Shepard's eyes. "This isn't an ordinary pregnancy Shepard… Mordin wants the baby to have enough time to properly form…" Tali said, her face burning with embarrassment.

"Is he prolonging it? Is that safe?" Shepard asked, concerned.

"No, no. It's fine. I would rather listen to him than other doctors…" Tali said, her gaze finally falling down to Shepard's hands that she held tightly, she loved his hands, five fingers.

"I just don't want you to be one of his experiments…" Shepard said, smiling to himself.

"What if I like being his experiment? I mean he made me this…" Tali said, showcasing her cybernetic hand, giving it a few squeezes. "And look how that improved our lives, publicly and… _privately_."

Shepard smiled as he diverted his eyes from her for a second. "I guess I should trust Mordin then… since he has given me you…" Shepard said, escorting Tali to the elevator.

"Trust him Shepard… trust me…" Tali said as the elevator doors closed.

After Shepard had walked off at the CIC, Tali hit the button for engineering. She was not fit to efficiently work, but she could still overview her _substitute_ engineer. The doors hissed open and Tali walked out. Her vision blurred only slightly causing her to grab the railing. She took a couple breaths before she flipped open her Omni-tool to check herself for infections.

"You little Bosh'tet!" She yelled to herself when she found that the cut in her arms had caused a minor infection that had broken through the antibiotics. She lowered her arm and looked up into the ceiling and put her hand on her visor.

She sighed before she turned and made her way to the left so she could walk past Ken and Gabby's computer deck to see what they were talking about, she enjoyed their random conversations of how "Shepard's a cheater" and "We should play some Skyllian Five Poker sometime Tali, I bet you have the best poker face."

She was surprised to find only Ken in the room, and she was going to ask where she was, but he quickly turned around and pointed at her.

"Tali! I just heard about Shepard's little mishap with you… Being stabbed by your husband… What a bummer." Ken said.

"It was an accident…" Tali said, trying to avoid this conversation.

"Accident my boot laces…" Ken said, turning back to his work.

Normally Tali would have let this go; normally Tali would have turned the other cheek, but for some reason she felt a rage that had been unknown to her boil inside of her. She stopped mist ride and clenched her one fist tightly before turning back to Ken.

"What! You don't believe me?" Tali yelled. "Why! Because I'm quarian you think I'm a liar, a dirty liar!"

"Tali? What is up with you? I was only messing around…" Ken said.

"Messing around?" Tali pulled her arm out of the sling. "Do you think this is messing around?" Tali said angrily.

"I've never seen you act like this before, Tali…" Ken said defensively.

Tali began to realize what was happening. Her face quickly burned and her body wanted to escape the room. She looked at her hands like she had no idea who she was. The lapse of control seemed unreal. She could hear the mumble of Ken talking, but the loud, deafening beat of her drumming heart blocked out his voice. Along with the torrent of blood that had made it's may to her face and ears, she was surprised that she heard the door open behind her.

Tali turned and saw gabby holding two cups filled with water. Tali didn't want another person to see her like this so she decided to make a hasty retreat.

"I'm sorry Ken, I don't know what came over me…" Tali said, quickly walking out of the other door and back to the elevator, she had to talk to Mordin.

"Geez, Ken. What did you do to her? Show her your pudding collection?" Gabby teased.

"I don't know what I did… she just snapped…" Ken stared blankly at the door in thought before quickly turning to Gabby. "And what about my pudding collection?" Ken asked.

Gabby quickly blew the water that she had just drank and sprayed it onto Ken.

"You seriously have a pudding collection!" Gabby asked, gawking.

"No… but I got you." Ken said, laughing as he wiped the water from his face. Gabby quickly socked him one on the shoulder.

Shepard looked at his private terminal, no important messages. He wanted to go do something, but everything simply seemed redundant and not exciting enough. He tapped his foot annoyingly on the metal walkway that overlooked the galaxy map. He had seen that hologram countless times, yet it still appeared to maintain a certain metaphorical luster. The stars and lights of the beacons on planets illuminated the surrounding darkness, a ward against the encroaching darkness that the Reapers were bringing.

He rested his arms down on the railing and hunched over to relax his back. He decided to also wipe his face, though no sweat was present. Shepard simply wanted something to do, but with alliances with the quarians, Shadow Broker (sort-of), and the mercenary bands for all that he knew, Shepard was ahead of schedule. He decided to think back on old missions, the one missions that happened before he had died.

He began to drift off as he remembered running on the citadel desperately to find… The elevator doors behind him broke his recollection. He turned to see Tali nervously walking over to Mordin's door. She also appeared to quicken her step when she saw that he had seen her. Shepard wanted to go find out what she was up to… again, but he decided that he would just find out later.

He turned back to the alluring gaze of the galaxy map and began to fall into memories again.

Tali quickly pressed her way in Mordin's door and locked it. She gave a happy sigh of relief and finally looked over to see Mordin injecting a space hamster with a new enzyme, Mordin smiled upon seeing her, the hamster squeaked.

"Mordin… I don't know what's happening to-" Tali started.

"Mood swings? Loss of control? Yes? Common traits of pregnancy though happening quickly. Odd. Need further research to see if ramifications will cause lasting effects. Don't move." Mordin quickly scanned her with his Omni-tool. "Sit. Need to talk about your eating habits." Mordin said.

Tali mechanically sat down and adjusted her sling. She looked nervously up at Mordin who hovered over mumbling a million and one things in a split second. She shrunk her head back in her body hoping to escape Mordin, but it only appeared to make him louder and hover more closely.

"Tali'Zorah needs to relax. Traumatic experience causing mood swings to develop faster. Recommend laying down. Rest. Relaxation, no intimate quality time. Could cause mood swings to become sporadic. Emotional imbalance already at a dangerous level. Fascinating. Should run comparisons with growing relationship between Ken and Gabby. Good comparison." Mordin said, running another couple hundred tests.

"Mordin…?" Tali asked.

"Yes, Mrs. Tali'Zorah?" Mordin said.

"Is there some way of controlling them… better." Tali asked.

"Ken and Gabby are crewmembers. Controlling them would seem-" Mordin started.

"No… the mood swings…" Tali said.

"Not much. Previous recommendation best choice. Consider a it a vacation. Hands will be full when the baby is born. Feeding. Changing. Unpleasant stuff. Not my field. Consider Chakwas. Good mother figure." Mordin suggested.

"You can't be serious…" Tali said.

"No. Chakwas shows great motherly traits. Distant. Happy. Stuck in the past." Mordin said, smiling.

"I can't believe you are joking at a time like this!" Tali said, almost laughing herself.

"Improving mood. Helps prevent sporadic swings. Stay happy Mrs. Tali'Zorah. Keep control of your moods. The crew's lives depend on it." Mordin said, cracking another smile.

"Bosh'tet…" Tali whispered under her breath.

"Quite the contrary. If you need me, you know where to find me."

"Thanks Mordin." Tali said, feeling much better about her situation.

Garrus and Miranda had been quiet for the past week. They didn't make any noise and the candle-lit midnight dinners had ended, yet the fiery glow of their love still glimmered on the ship. The happy loving smile still broke through Miranda's face when she saw Garrus. Garrus, too, managed to break a smile on his face even though his face couldn't show it. Garrus was sitting at the dinner table calibrating the weapons from his Omni-tool. Miranda sat down beside him and looped her arm in his.

"How's it going Miranda?" Garrus asked.

"It's going pretty well Gary, but the bed heater's calibrator is off. I think you need to go calibrate it." Miranda said, looking up at him, smiling.

Garrus chuckled. "Is it that bad? I though Cerberus built this ship to be perfect." Garrus said, looking around the room like the wall was about to blow out.

"The ship isn't perfect, but then again… neither am I…" Miranda said, resting her head on Garrus's shoulder.

"I wonder how Shepard and Tali have been doing ever since he stabbed her?" Garrus asked to himself, out loud.

"He stabbed her? Why?" Miranda asked.

"I'm surprised that you didn't hear about that. Apparently the Shadow Broker broke into Shepard's dreams and caused him to act out in the real world. So the Shadow Broker made him stab her to get a point across or something." Garrus said.

"How do you know all of this?" Miranda asked.

"Because I saw Tali in the Med-bay… without her mask…" Garrus said, looking into Miranda's eyes that quickly widened.

"You didn't…" She said excitedly.

Garrus nodded his head.

"Are you going to tell me?" She asked.

"I think I should let Tali decide if she wants you to know" Garrus said.

All of the excitement ran out of Miranda's face. "I guess I'll ask her tomorrow then…" Miranda said angrily.

She rose to leave and made it halfway to her room when she turned back to him.

"My bed heater still needs calibrating. My room is so hot now that I can't wear much clothing…" Miranda teased.

Garrus grunted as he rose and walked into her room. The room was pretty hot.


	53. Chapter 53: Escaping the Storm

Tali sat at the mess hall table, fiddling with her hands. _A vacation… _The closest that Tali had ever been to a vacation was when she was stranded on the planet, Pragia, with Shepard, and that would barely constitute as a vacation. She rubbed her hands together, separated them, stares, and resumed rubbing again. _Where do I want to go?_ The question alluded her. _I could go to Illium… No… I've been there to much. The Citadel… No… that would be bureaucraticly boring. Omeg- No! Never…. Noveria? Maybe… She enjoyed watching the snow._

Miranda and Garrus walked in the room and quickly sat on both sides of Tali who looked around at them.

"What are you guys doing?" Tali asked, hoping to escape.

"So Tali…" Miranda started. "Can Garrus tell me?"

"Can Garrus tell you what?" Tali asked, looking somewhat angry at Garrus who stared at Miranda.

"What she is asking Tali…" Garrus said.

"What I am asking Tali is, can Garrus tell me what you look like under your mask?" Miranda said, smiling.

Tali's heart skipped a couple of beats.

"Wh-what? Why did…? Garrus?" Tali questioned.

"It's a simple question Tali…" Garrus said, halfheartedly.

"It's private… between me and Shepard. You weren't even supposed to see me Garrus…" Tali said, trying to stand-up again, but Miranda grabbed her shoulder and brought her back down.

"Tali, look how respectable he's been with your secret. I mean, he wouldn't tell me unless you gave your consent. He made me come here and plead to you to let him tell me… unless you want to just show me…" Miranda said.

"I don't think I…" Tali said.

"Just a small peak… quench my curiosity…" Miranda bargained.

"I'll tell you one thing…" Tali said, painfully.

"Okay, shoot." Miranda said.

"I have blue hair…" and with that Tali quickly blew past Garrus who had let his guard down and quickly jumped into the elevator to escape them.

"Hmm… blue hair… that seems exotic…" Miranda said to herself.

"Why did you do that Miranda?" Garrus asked.

"Do what? That? I wanted to know and she was being difficult. All I wanted was a hint…" Miranda said.

"For some reason I don't quite believe you. I should have never brought up seeing her face to you…" Garrus said.

"You are too hard on yourself…" Miranda said.

"Ya… that must be it." Garrus said sarcastically.

"Have you seen Kal around?" Miranda asked.

"No I haven't…" Garrus said, noticing the quick change in subject.

"I wonder wear that quarian marine went?" Miranda inquired.

"Probably in engineering or the cargo bay…" Garrus said, thinking to himself.

Meanwhile in the cargo bay, Kal had found Grunt who was monotonously punching a large sack of sand. He himself had thrown a few punches before he had tired out, but now he watched grunt smash away on the sack for a good half hour without ever slowing pace.

"Damn Grunt!" Kal said after the Krogan finished and wiped the sweat from his brow. "That was quite amazing."

"That is just the warm up Reegar, you should see it when I mean business…" Grunt said, slamming his fist into his hand sending dust flying.

"We should wrestle sometime…" Kal suggested calmly.

"You? Against me?" Grunt laughed. "There is no contest!" Grunt said.

"Put your credits where your mouth is…" Kal said, standing up and twirling his arms around to stretch.

"It's your funeral Reegar…" Grunt said, stepping back and getting into an attack pose.

"This should be interesting…" Jack said.

Kal and Grunt both looked over to see her sitting on top of a few boxes, legs crossed, leaning forwards. How long she had been there would most likely be forever a mystery, but they now had an audience. Kal finished stretching his neck muscles and readied his fists in front of him. Grunt laughed. Kal was quiet and focused.

Grunt was the first to strike. He lunged forwards, bringing a heavy fist down along with a body charge to counter any defensive blocks, but Grunt hit air. Suddenly a pressure hit his legs and quickly knocked him off-balance, but it was only minor. He turned around to see Kal rising from a quick leg sweep.

"Damn Reegar, you're quick." Grunt laughed.

"Almost as quick as your mouth…" Kal teased.

Grunt looked at him angrily. "You will regret saying that!"

Grunt quickly bent down and charged Kal who barely managed to jump out of the way. The small clip of Grunt's armor on his made him spin a bit faster than he wanted, but he still managed to get his footing. Grunt had quickly turned and was on the return trip when Kal had regained his balance. Grunt felt a pressure on both legs as the quarian vanished again. Kal laughed from the sense of a match as he slid through Grunt's legs and punched both knees.

Grunt turned and caught Kal who was still sliding on the ground and picked him up. Kal was thrown to other side of the 'arena' and hit some crates. He laughed as he stood up and readied himself again. The heavy footfalls of Grunt quickly brought Kal's attention back up to see Grunt still a good distance away, but still enough to be dangerous. Kal ran forwards and jumped hitting Grunt in the face with his powerful legs. Grunt fell down from the blow and slid into the boxes that Kal had just ran from. Grunt stood with a bloody lip and smiled.

"Let's call this a draw… I don't think Shepard would want us killing each other." Kal joked, breathing in deeply.

"You're no fun Reegar…" Grunt joked.

Kal grabbed a towel from one of the boxes and threw it to Grunt who quickly grabbed it from the air and used it to soak up the blood from his lip.

"You call that a fight?" Jack asked.

"We don't want to kill each other… uhm… Mac?"

"Jack…"

"Right… Jack." Kal corrected.

"I know! Why don't both of you fight me?" Jack suggested.

"I have to get back to work Jack. I would if I didn't need my arms and legs along with half my body…" Kal teased.

"And what half would that be?" Jack asked with a smile.

"My good half." Kal said.

"Top or bottom?" Jack asked.

"Bottom…" Kal teased.

"Ooo… we got ourselves a ladies man. Thinking you are so sexy… makes me hate the world even more." Jack said sarcastically.

"Well see you too later…" Kal said, waving goodbye.

Jack quickly stood up and blocked the door.

"You think you can just leave with that remark being made?" Jack asked, looking with piercing eyes.

"Yes I do…" Kal said, smiling secretly under his helmet.

"Well you better think differently…" Jack said angrily though she questioned if she was actually mad at him.

Kal brushed past her and walked back to the elevator to return to the armor where Jacob was cleaning his guns. He walked past Gabby who was humming to herself. He stepped into the elevator and bent over as his ribs yelled at him.

"Krogans…" Kal said angrily, pressing the ascend button.

Gabby walked past Kal who seemed a little worse for wear, humming the theme song for Blasto. She wondered if this quarian was going to take one of their jobs, Ken's, or worse, hers! She always brushed it aside and went on her way. She walked into the engine room. Empty.

"Ken?" Gabby asked.

"Ken isn't here can I leave a message," an unfamiliar voice said.

"Who is this?" Gabby asked.

"Oh, you wouldn't know…" it said.

"Ken! This isn't funny!" Gabby yelled.

"Gabby. Gabby. Gabby. I have told you. Ken is not here." said the strange figure that appeared to walk out from the bulkhead.

Gabby quickly turned and hit the door that wasn't opening.

"Open!" Gabby yelled, beating on the door.

"Now. Now Gabby. I only want to talk." The Shadow Broker said.

Gabby turned around, but kept herself pressed against the door, her heart beating a million beats every second.

"Say it! Just don't do anything to me…" Gabby said, terrified beyond belief.

"Glad to hear that I have your attention. I see that you are worried about Kal'Reegar taking over your job. How unfortunate… Shepard had fallen quite in love with all of the quarian people. I would money that eventually he will replace the whole crew with quarians, including you." The Shadow Broker hinted.

"Why are you telling me this?" Gabby asked.

"I believe in justice and fairness. I see Shepard's exploitation of the quarian people to further his own selfish desires to be with Tali'Zorah." The Shadow Broker lied.

"Shepard isn't selfish… He cares for his crew…" Gabby said.

"He does care for you. He cares for the whole ship, but he also cares for Tali'Zorah. Tali'Zorah is stressed about being alone on this ship; she finds working with quarians a better experience than suffering through the inadequacies of human intelligence. Shepard will give her anything, you watch. She will ask Shepard for a vacation, and he will let her go, but if you ask for one, he will tell you 'no I need you in engineering'. Same thing goes if she asks for more quarians on the ship. Shepard will do anything in his power to make that happen, including the elimination of crewmembers." The Shadow Broker reasoned.

Gabby felt her Iron Will buckle under the heat of the Shadow Broker's words, but she stayed strong.

"Why would I believe a hooded stranger like you? Why would I believe someone who is an intruder on this ship?" Gabby asked, feeling her confidence make a rebound.

"Intruder? How can I be an intruder when I'm not on this ship?" The Shadow Broker asked. "I want you to watch… it will happen. I am never wrong…"

"How can you not be here, yet you are right there?" Gabby asked.

"I'm here because you see me and feel my presence, but that does not make me real. I am as real as spirits in the wind. I'm as real as the eyes that you feel on your back when no one is around. I'm as real as a ghost. I am not here, yet you perceive me to be. Why is that? Curious… I want you to think about it…" The Shadow Broker said, walking backwards.

Before Gabby could say anymore, she watched as it vanished where it had walked out of, the solid metal bulkhead. The door behind her buzzed open and Ken walked in to the room. He jumped when he almost ran into Gabby.

"Geez Gabby! I thought you were a ghost or an intruder. I almost jumped out of my skivvies!" Ken said.

"I think**_ I_ **just saw a ghost…" Gabby said to herself.

Much later, the crew was sitting at the mess hall table. Shepard had decided that he would take this lunch break to be his lunch break and joined the other crewmembers for some food. Gabby and Ken sat on the other side him. Gabby played around with her food. Ken inhaled his. Shepard was already finished when Tali walked around the corner and walked over to Shepard. She sat down next to him and rubbed her hands a few times before she managed to speak.

"Shepard? I want to ask you something…" Tali said nervously.

"Sure Tali. What is it?" Shepard asked.

"I was wondering if I could take… you know… a vacation, just for a few days to get my mind at ease with this whole pregnancy thing…" Tali said quickly, rubbing her hands.

"Tali, of course you can take a small vacation. We've through a lot and I think you deserve some downtime… Where did you have in mind?" Shepard asked.

Gabby sunk her head. _He was right! Gabby. Gabby. Gabby. Listen to yourself. Everyone deserves a vacation, especially if they went through as many suicide missions as Tali had been through. Hell, I bet he would even let me go on vacation for all the hard work that I've done._

"Shepard?" Gabby asked, breaking the conversation that Tali and Shepard were having about Noveria.

"Yes Gabby?" Shepard asked.

"I would like to have a vacation too…" Gabby said.

"Sure why not?" Shepard said with a smile. "Both of you can go hang out at Noveria."

A crew-member walked over to Shepard and handed him a data pad. He quickly reviewed it and looked back up at Gabby.

"I need you to stay a few more days, Eric's bogged down with a fever so Ken is going to need help… Sorry." Shepard said, handing the data pad back to the crew-member.

"I understand commander." Gabby said. _It wasn't because he loves Tali. It was because something came up. But why wouldn't he make her stay then? No stop thinking like that! But it's true! No. He was going to give you a vacation, but something came up, if it didn't then she would be at Noveria with Tali._ The doubt continued as the strange figure's voice lingered in her head. It was dead on correct, almost like it had predicted the future.

Gabby stood and walked back to the elevator with Ken who stared at her the entire walk.

"What's the matter Gabby? You don't seem like your normal-strict-self…"

It's nothing Ken…" Gabby said.


	54. Chapter 54: Vacation

Tali sat on the shuttle to Noveria, nervous that she was going to be away from Shepard, yet relieved to finally have her own alone time. Shepard gave her a disarming smile and wave before the doors closed for her trip down. A week he said. A week without Shepard. She looked back at her life when she didn't have Shepard around, before they were married, before they found each other, but she found a life that was borderline mundane. She wanted to enjoy herself on Noveria, not purely think about Shepard. She was independent, free, and a quarian. She bolstered her resolve just as the doors closed. One week.

Shepard stepped out of the launch bay and watched the shuttle leave. He wanted to be on that shuttle, but he wanted Tali to relax without him. He uneasily made himself smile before he turned from the window and made his way back to the CIC; he had work to do.

Tali looked out the side view port of the shuttle. The Normandy slowly shrank as the white surface of Noveria drew closer. The soft pillow like clouds flew past the window like wisps of smoke. Tali watched the spiraling shapes create intricate designs that no artist could capture on canvas. Like white dragons spinning and weaving amongst each other in a playful scuffle, the clouds wisped past Tali's window. For a split second she felt free from Shepard, but she quickly felt guilty about forgetting about him and quickly brought back his many joyous memories.

The shuttle broke through the thick cloud barrier revealing the scene of a beautiful blizzard coating the ground in a glittering white blanket. The colony of Noveria, which had recently been rebuilt and expanded in the two years that Shepard had been there jutted through the snow banks with a sparkling ray of shimmering light reflecting from its many greenhouse windows. As the shuttle flew closer to the complex, the more details came into view. The intricate window designs along with the overlapping metal sheeting that reminded her of Wrex's head. Such memories always brought a smile to her face.

The landing sight was quickly cleared of all snow as automated robots swept it off. The fresh powdery coat was blown off from the force of the shuttle's thrusters. Tali laughed to herself as she watched the powder snow dance around the shuttle like ice spirits. She loved the idea of seeing everything alive. The shuttle's engines slowly hissed to a stop and Tali walked over to the doors that hissed open. A quick fury of snowflakes followed by the bright light of the Noveria reflecting snow caused Tali to shield her eyes even through her visor. She felt herself smile upon stepping out and hearing the gentle crunch of the snow beneath her feet. A service drone drove out and showed her the way.

"Right this way madam," The robot said in a regular monotone though to Tali it sounded warm and pleasant.

Tali followed the small drone to a set of large doors that were partially covered by a clear over-hanging canopy. The glass broke apart the sun's rays enough to make her eyes from stop burning just enough to see the lock click open. The doors here hissed open too which reminded her of the engines of the Flotilla, it reminded her of home, of Shepard. She frowned, but quickly broke from the small slump as she stepped into the almost crystalline interior of the Noveria complex.

"Hello! Welcome to Noveria! We hope that you enjoy your visit and make yourself at home!" said a smiling secretary from across the deck.

"Thanks" Tali said, uneasy of the unnatural kindness that she appeared to be getting.

Her steps echoed through the large halls of the Noveria complex. An echoing drum beat that echoed into her heart and her soul, a beat of freedom and independence. She rounded the next corner and entered another magnificent lobby. The edges of which bustled with the voices of happy shoppers and the voices of the vendors shouting their products, another remembrance of home. She smiled to herself as the joy of picking a place that wasn't home as much as it was began to sink in.

She made her way over to one of the large windows and looked out at the frozen mountains that spanned the entire scenery. Cold. Distant. Monumental. Beautiful. She loved them. She leaned against the railing and stretched her back, bending her stomach down and her butt up. The soothing cracks made her feel better. Slowly she became aware of another body leaning on the same railing beside her. She looked over at the being. It was another quarian, male, who was not staring at the amazing scenery, but at her.

"Hello there Ms.. How is your visit to Noveria going?" He asked her.

"It's going really nice. I love it. Oh and I am a Mrs." Tali said, presenting her bonding wrap, but her vision was being dragged back to the scenery outside.

The sloping mountain sides with the jutting dark spires pointing through the snow simply drove her into a state of awe. How could something so barren and empty be so beautiful? Almost like an answer to her question, the quarian spoke up.

"I love how the mountains slope and how the rocks contrast with the beautiful snow. It is simply alluring to artists and mechanics… I've lived here for a year now and these mountains still drive me wild." he said.

Tali stared at him suspiciously. She believed he was hitting on her, something that she found attractive, but nonetheless inappropriate.

"I am married…" Tali reiterated.

The quarian caught on quickly. "I know. You said that before. I was simply stating the beauty of Noveria to you so that we can appreciate it together." he said.

Tali stared at the young male quarian and looked back at the mountains. So beautiful.

"You should check out the shops and kiosks. They offer a wide selection of goods and services for all species, quarians including." The quarian said, still staring directly at Tali.

For once in the time that she had been in Noveria, she felt uneasy about the quarian in front of her. Was it the piercing gaze? Was it that he wouldn't leave her alone? Or was it the unsettling feeling like this was some sort of set-up. She wished that this quarian hadn't spoiled her enjoyment. The snow whipped furiously outside in a violent yet beautiful ballet. Ice crystals here. Powdery snow there. Dancing. Spinning. Always moving and being replaced by fresh legs providing an endless, nonstop show.

He was still staring at her.

"What do you want?" Tali asked, staring hard at the quarian.

"I'm just looking at the most beautiful quarian that I have ever met." he said.

An instant flag flew in Tali's head. She wanted to get away from this creepy, but she didn't want to be obvious in case he had people waiting for her.

"That is very flattering… Thank-you, but like I said… I'm married…" Tali said, presenting her bond wrap again.

"Why is your arm in a sling?" he asked, avoiding the subject of her being married.

"It's a long story…" Tali said.

"I live here so I have time to listen." he said.

"Just leave me alone…" Tali said.

"Very well… Nice seeing you Ms.?" The quarian asked.

"Mrs. Tali'Zorah vas Normandy." She said, stressing the 'Mrs.'.

"See you around Tali." He said giving her a wave goodbye.

Tali took a couple breaths as she eased her hand on the personal shotgun release switch. She hoped that she would never see him again, but knowing her luck, she would inevitably run into him again.

Tali decided to browse the stores and see what they had. One of the stores that sat in the corner seemed exceptionally promising. The cooks were all cooking up turian dishes and a few even appeared to be long lost quarian dishes, the likes of which Tali had never seen, but heard about. She quickly ordered a dish, and took her seat in the corner. The plate was steaming in front of her. She injected one of her many injections that she had stored in her luggage that should be in her room by now. She positioned herself so her back was to the other people in the restaurant so that they would not be alarmed of what she would do next.

The helmet hissed as the pressurization from the helmet was broken. She set the visor down on her lap and felt the cool perfect temperature of Noveria. She could practically smell the snow through the alluring scent of the amazing dish in front of her. The utensils had been set out in a quaint little order of sophistication, a sophistication of which Tali did not consider herself. She grabbed the nearest fork and knife and began to dig into the steaming steak-like object, the likes of which had never graced her taste buds.

She could have died at that moment as the savory meat caused her mouth to instantly fill with starving saliva that craved the tastes of the unique turian spices and rubs that the steak had been tediously prepared with. She was about to take another bite when another person came over and sat opposite of her; Tali kept her head down as she struggled to find a way to get her mask back on.

"So are you enjoying yourself madam?" the manager asked.

"Yes. I love the food. It's amazing." Tali said, trying to make the conversation short.

"You sound different from other quarians that have eaten here. It's not as mechanically garbled if you know what I mean." the manager laughed.

Tali managed to force herself to laugh, but she quickly stopped when a small piece of her hair fell from the back of her helmet and fell out. She watched the blue strand sway in front of her eyes for what felt like three minutes, but it was for only a second before she quickly grabbed it and pushed it back, but it was too late. The manager had stopped laughing and was staring directly at her.

"Uhm… Madam?" The manager asked.

"I fine! Don't be alarmed!" Tali said brining the visor up and clipping it back on and looking up at the young human manager who had a look of horror, confusion, and something that could not be described.

"You… But-I… that's impossible… isn't it?" he asked, stumbling over his words.

"Yes it is. You didn't see anything, just forget about it and leave me alone…" Tali said.

"Yes Ma'am!" he said, quickly rising and leaving to go to the back.

Tali looked around the crowded room; everyone was staring at her. Everyone. She quickly turned back to her food and stared at the half eaten steak. She waited for the voices to continue, for everyone to forget about her, for an opportunity to finish what her mouth was craving. She popped her visor off quickly and placed it on the table as she quickly began to cut and eat at the steak. The vegetables were also beyond anything that she had ever eaten. The sensations as the juicy greens slid down her throat and warmed her spice deprived belly caused her to hum with satisfaction.

"Uhm… Ma'am?" It was the manager again..

Tali stiffened, but was happy to see that the plate had been cleaned of all food. She looked down at her lap and reached to pick up her helmet, but it wasn't there. She looked up at the side of the table and saw it sitting there, completely visible. She took a deep breath in as she slowly reached out and grabbed it, but the silence of the room only proved that everyone knew that her mask was off.

"Yes?" Tali asked shakily.

"We don't support suicide in this restaurant so I have to ask you to leave…" he said.

"I'm not committing suicide! I'm enjoying myself!" Tali said happily as the sense of freedom and joy began to take over.

Tali stood up happily and transferred a reasonable tip to the manager and the restaurant itself from the funds that Shepard had given her, she was royalty to say the least.

She stepped out of the store and out onto the busy walkway again. She felt an overwhelming tiredness fill her so she decided to check out the quarters that would be hers for her week long vacation.

The hotel was an outcropping of the main hub of the colony. Doors with specialized card and voice recognition abilities gave her a more sense of security especially from the creeper that she did not know the name of. Her room was spacious and homey. The small heater in the corner made the room pleasant and warm. The artificial cracking made it appear that a cozy fire was burning which there wasn't. She also found a switch in the room that was labeled 'For Quarian Use Only'. She flipped the switch and listened as the room's vents cleared the room of most disease and bacteria. A cool blast of clean Noverian air was cycled in the room instead.

She walked over to the bed and unclipped her visor. The colder air nipped at her nose, but the ability to see her breath in her room only made her smile with satisfaction. She plopped on the bed and smiled. She had forgotten about Shepard for the whole day as much as she had made herself from betraying him. She closed her eyes as she grabbed the blankets with her useable hand and pulled it over her. The blanket's warmth sealed the deal as she slowly drifted off to sleep.

A dark figure loomed over her bed that night. Cloaked. Watching. Waiting. Smiling.

"There is no escape my dear. I have agents everywhere…" and with that the figure was gone.

The silent room was only filled with the soft breathing of Tali with the occasional soft snore. Every once and awhile she would turn in bed as her mind wondered off into a dream world with Shepard. She smiled in her sleep. Unaware of the future. Happy with the present. Content with the past.


	55. Chapter 55: Understanding

After the first day, Shepard realized how much he missed having Tali to talk to. He wondered around the ship trying to start up conversations with other crew members, but it simply was not the same. As much as Shepard wanted to go to Noveria with her, he had work to do. He had received an urgent message from an anonymous source. Apparently the colony of Glikkan on the planet Patseyev was having a dispute over the platinum mining causing a division that was threatening to tear the colony apart. Shepard decided that he would quickly go there and fix this dispute.

Shepard decided that he was going to go down to the planet by himself to prevent any further escalation of the already fragile infrastructure. The doors opened to the shuttle to reveal a riot torn mining town that consisted of a few mobile shelters. The ground was patted down from amount of traffic from the colonists going either to work or rioting. Shepard leaned on the latter.

A few fires on the ground along with the broken glass made Shepard a bit more leery of the mental condition of the colonists. He kept his pistol at the ready and his biotic amp warmed up just in case. His body froze as he saw a body claw its way from behind one of the buildings. The poor soul's clothes had almost been completely ripped from him. Shepard quickly ran over to him and lifted up the man's head who coughed uncontrollably.

"You…" he said. "You came for us… you came to help…"

"Help from what? I thought this was a riot." Shepard said, watching the fragile life in the man's eyes fade in and out.

"H-h-he, no-no-no, not he, it, came from nowhere…" the man said in a fit of delusion.

"What came from nowhere?" Shepard asked, trying to keep the man conscious.

"I don't know what it was, but it made everyone turn on each other… That smile… Oh my God! The smile!" The man started to cry and shake.

Shepard tried to comfort the man, but he was beyond saving at this point.

"I'll call for help! Don't worry!" Shepard promised.

But before Shepard could relay the message a sharp pain hit him in the chest. His vision blurred slightly as he felt all of the muscles of his body seize up and stiffen. He fell on the ground and had just enough time to realize that he was paralyzed and that a dangerous cloaked figure was walking towards him.

* * *

Tali woke up the next morning relieved and happy. She did not feel sick, and the cool air on her face made her smile. The rest of her body had been warmed by the heated blankets and the heated mattress. Her back cracked a couple times as she lifted her one arm above her head and stretched. She looked around the room and saw a button on the wall that she had not seen before. She hit the button and jumped as the wall beside her buzzed to life. The shutters opened to reveal another magnificent mountain scene blocked by the clear crystalline glass that shimmered different shades of green and blue from the rays of the sun.

Tali felt safe and secure here. She smiled to herself as she took the glove off of her one hand and felt the cold dry the sweat that had formed over the night. Her breath was still visible. Her smile was still growing. She knew that she had to thank Shepard somehow when she got back because this was simply the best time that she had ever had in her life. She opened up her Omni-tool and found that she had a message waiting for her.

"Hey Tali! It's Shepard. I was just wondering how things are going and seeing if you are enjoying yourself. We are going to be in a different quadrant for some time so this message will not be able to be answered until we return to this quadrant. I hope you enjoy your time.

Love, Shepard.

Tali smiled at the coy little message and closed her Omni-tool. She quickly redressed herself and left the cool room to find a bustle of people leaving their rooms. Tali wondered how Shepard was fairing without her.

She stepped back out into the lobby that she had been in yesterday. The shopkeepers were still barking and the crowd was flowing the same way that it had the night before. She made her way over to the doors on the far end of the room and entered them to find herself in a garage. The many transport vehicles that sat around her in perfect repair bays made her eyes widen.

"Hello young lady." said a gentle old man who wiped his hands clean of black dirt and grime that he had wiped from one of the transmission coils of the PX-3 Transport Vehicle. "What brings you to these dirty parts of Noveria?"

"I was just exploring this place… I love the set-up you have here…" Tali said, looking around the room at the millions of tools, parts, and broken things; she loved it.

"Interested in mechanics? Hell, what am I saying? You're a quarian! Of course you love mechanics!" The old man said, laughing heartily.

"Most quarians love mechanics, not all…" Tali corrected.

"I'm sorry if I offended you…" the man said, the smile still playfully spread on his face.

"It's okay… I'm just a little touchy on that subject…" Tali said, holding back the fury of pregnancy.

"Are you one of the few who don't love mechanics?" the man asked.

"Are you kidding? I love mechanics! My husband constantly tells me that I am the best mechanic in the galaxy!" Tali boasted.

"The best he says? Well please tell your husband back on the Migrant Fleet that it was an honor to see such a master." the man said, performing an exaggerated bow.

"Oh… He's not at the Flotilla. He's actually not even quarian…" She said, rather uneasily yet proudly.

"Turian or Asari?" the man asked.

"Neither… Human…" Tali corrected.

"But aren't quarians and humans incomp-"

"Incompatible? Yes, physically, but love is never incompatible. He picked me, and I picked him. It's been interesting." Tali said.

"I bet… I mean no, excuse me if you will, but no intimate touching must be rough on the relationship…" the man said, leaning on the railing, becoming obviously enthralled by her story.

"We… uhm… 'touch'…" Tali said, breaking eye contact at the word.

"I thought that…" the man started.

"I bolster my immune system with a cocktail of antibiotics and immuno-boosters. It gives us some… uhm… quality time together…" Tali said.

"It still must be rough to know that their will not be a little one between you two. I mean you seem like an incredibly nice person, and I bet your husband is too. What a shame…" the man said.

"Well…" Tali started to say as her hand instinctually rubbed her stomach. The man caught on quick.

"You 'are' pregnant? But how? I mean, what, did you use like a surrogate father or something? Like another quarian or something?" the man asked, mouth agape.

"No… it's ours…" Tali said, her face burned.

"Well boil my family nuggets in oil that just made my day!" the man said.

"Hey Frank!" came a voice from somewhere in the garage.

"Yeah?" Frank yelled back.

"We need ya!" the voice said.

"Well duty calls… nice seeing you Mrs.…?" Frank asked.

"Tali'Zorah…" Tali said extending her hand out to him.

"Nice to meet you Tali… You should swing by sometime and show us your skills. You have made me quiet curious" Frank said.

"I might have to do that…" Tali said, grinning under her mask.

* * *

In a darker part of Noveria, a quarian walked through the steam of the volcanic geothermal power supply. He looked around at every shadow like he was afraid of what they were, but he showed no signs of being afraid.

"So is it her?" the Shadow Broker asked, though he already knew the answer.

"Yes it is…" the quarian from the store said.

"Does she trust you?" the Shadow Broker asked.

"No… She does not…" He said, standing still as what felt like a series of wind currents whipped around his body. The Shadow Broker materialized from the surrounding fog, directly behind him.

"Well you have to get her alone so that I can speak with her…" the Shadow Broker said.

"Why would you want to personally speak with her?" the quarian asked.

"What gives you the right to question me?" the Shadow Broker asked plaintively.

"Sorry…" he said, bowing his head.

"We have an arrangement that is all…" The Shadow Broker added.

"Very well… I will succeed…" the quarian said.

"Leave…"

The quarian bowed his head and turned around. He left the room without saying a word. The Shadow Broker smiled to himself as the lower portions of his cloak faded in and out of the dimensions. The smiling quickly evolved into a quiet sinister laugh as he faded from existence completely.

* * *

The world slowly came back into view, a mass of abstract colors and random shapes. Shepard listened to his heart beat and his breathing that appeared to be louder than the world around him. A dark shape materialized in front of him laughing. Shepard raised his head to get a better look at this thing, but he could only see a delayed double image. It slowly aligned itself to form clearer images of the surrounding room. Shepard could feel cool air on his unarmored body. He closed his eyes as his mind tried to reset as he slapped his tongue around in his dehydrated mouth.

He opened his eyes again to see the figure still standing in front of him, the same figure that had hit him with whatever he had been hit with.

"God…" Shepard said to himself as the throbbing pain in his head began to intensify.

He tried to lift his hand up to rub his temples or at most hold his head together, but as they recoiled he found that they were bound behind the chair. Shepard grunted as he realized that he was being held captive by the thing that he thought was on his side. He looked back at the figure who had moved exceptionally close to him.

"Hello John H. Shepard…" the Shadow Broker said.

"Please… just Shepard… my head is killing me…" Shepard joked.

"You aren't in any position to joke… Shepard." the Shadow Broker said.

"Well you listened to me didn't you?" Shepard asked, staring at it.

"I'm humoring you…" the Shadow Broker said.

"Well so am I…" Shepard teased.

The Shadow Broker stared at Shepard with that painted on smile that continually switched between different species and races. He giggled to himself as he stepped back a step.

"You seem to be taking this whole hostage thing quite well Shepard…" the Shadow Broker said.

"What would be the point in screaming? You obviously have an advantage on me…" Shepard said, throwing a quick defiant smile.

"Starting to use your brain Shepard? I like it…" The Shadow Broker said, clapping its three-fingered and five-fingered hands together.

"I also managed to slip my hands loose while you have been talking…" Shepard said, laughing to himself.

"Really? I would like to see that." The Shadow Broker said.

Shepard quickly raised both of his hands from behind his back; the Shadow Broker was not the least bit surprised, at most he appeared to be amused. Shepard stood up and tried to take a step forward, but the sudden stop of his leg almost tripped him. He looked down to see the shackles that had him stuck to the floor. Shepard sighed and sat back down; the Shadow Broker laughed.

"Don't worry Shepard. I won't keep you long. I just want to see that you are mortal…"

"And how are you going to do that?" Shepard asked.

The Shadow Broker pulled out a familiar looking decorated dagger. Shepard stared at it with eyes that wanted to scream their terror, but Shepard would not allow them. He sat in his chair and tightened his body up. The Shadow Broker quickly vanished, but quickly reappeared in front of Shepard. The searing pain in Shepard's leg caused him to immediately yell out as he looked down to see the dagger. He breathed out in rapid succession as he brought his hands to his leg trying to hold the pain where it was. Each muscle twitch caused the blade to scrape against his leg bone. He looked up at the Shadow Broker and maintained a defiant look.

"What do you want?" Shepard asked through barred teeth.

"I don't want anything. I am giving you something…" The Shadow Broker said.

"What? Pain?" Shepard asked.

"No… Understanding…" The Shadow Broker said with an air of happiness.

Shepard struggled to find words. He struggled to say 'what' but his mind was not putting the pieces together.

"Your mind is merely making the pain Shepard…" the Broker added.

"What are you talking about?"

"You've seen that blade before… Where?"

"You used it to kill Tali…"

"Where?"

"In my dream…" Shepard said with a wave of understanding replacing the pain.

"So what did I just do to you?" The Broker asked.

"You stabbed me…" Shepard said, though now he was unsure.

"With what?"

Shepard looked down, there was nothing in his leg. He looked back up at the Shadow Broker with wondering eyes.

"Why are you doing this?" Shepard asked.

"The Reapers use a form of indoctrination. This is exactly how real they will make it. They will destroy you with your own mind. You will believe what they want you to believe. You will become their mental slave if you do not listen to me." The Shadow Broker said.

"Why did you have to kidnap me then?" Shepard asked.

"Because you would never let me out-right stab you. You need the proper setting."

"So are you done?"

"Done? We've just begun!" The Broker laughed.

"But all of this is an illusion."

"I am going to make you see the real from fake which means that I am going to torture you Shepard. I am going to go through every level of indoctrination on you. You will be my slave if you can not hold out against it. This will make you stronger. This will make you more informed and ready for when the Reapers arrive."

"Why are you doing this?"

"The last time I checked. Galactic Genocide is bad for business. You are famous and can keep this galaxy alive. I, on the other hand, am very notorious and I have not saved the galaxy… well not directly at least." The Shadow Broker chuckled.

"So you need me?"

"As much as you need me…"


	56. Chapter 56: Soaking

Shepard sat in the room with the Shadow Broker who stood completely still in front of him with the same unnerving smile that cycled continuously through species. Shepard sighed to break the silence, but the Shadow Broker made no motion or attempt at anything. He looked around the room to gauge where he was being held, but the windowless walls along with his thumping headache prevented his investigation from getting too in-depth. He decided to map out the Shadow Broker instead.

He stood in a dark brown cloak that appeared to be ripped at the bottom, but that was merely because it was wisping in and out of existence. Shepard tried to see the Shadow Broker's legs, or at least his feet, but the fuzzy bend in the dimensional wall around the Shadow Broker's lower half made any observation impossible. He had already took note of the Shadow Broker's separate fingered hands which also made the identification of the species impossible. Shepard gave up.

"Are you finished?" the Shadow Broker asked, almost making Shepard jump at the audible change in the volume of the completely silent room.

"Finished with what?" Shepard asked, leery of what the Broker was getting at.

"Trying to find out who I am…" The Shadow Broker answered.

"No, I'm not finished. I am contemplating who you are…" Shepard lied.

"Well I'll tell you that you are asking the wrong questions…" the Broker said.

"What should I be asking?" Shepard asked.

"You'll have to figure that out."

"That's not quite fair is it?"

"Well I am the man with the trigger and you are a man stuck in a chair… How much fairer do you want this?" The Broker laughed.

"You have a point…" Shepard said, laughing to himself.

"I do enjoy our talks Shepard. They are far more civil than talking with my agents… they are all so… afraid." The Broker said.

"I'm glad I can hold a conversation with you…? Mr.…?" Shepard asked.

"Nice try Shepard, but you're not even close." The Broker laughed again. "And speaking of close… Our time is up…" The Shadow Broker said.

"What do you mean 'Our time is up'?" Shepard asked.

The Shadow Broker pivoted around and walked right into the wall which would have been amusing if he didn't simply vanish into it. Shepard looked around the room again before he struggled with the leg shackles that were firmly in the ground. The door that sat in front of him slowly began to creak. Shepard stared at it curiously, but no answer appeared to be given by the always present voice of the Shadow Broker, but another answer was given when the edges of the door started to buckle sending in small jets of water. Shepard laughed.

"Another illusion?" Shepard asked out loud so if the Shadow Broker was listening he would hear him.

Shepard chuckled a few more times, but the slowly growing pool of water met up with his bare feet. He felt the water. He felt the coolness of the water. He felt its wetness.

"That isn't an illusion…" Shepard said to himself. "It has to be!" Shepard yelled.

He stood up and relaxed his body. He focused his mind on the room around him. He tried to visualize the water away, but he felt the water start to climb up his leg.

"Is the water the illusion?" Shepard asked out loud as the water reached his knees.

He desperately struggled to visualize the water as simply as a hologram, but the real wetness and coolness of the water quickly drove those ideas out. He looked around the room trying to find something to put his mind at ease. The water was up to his waist.

"Maybe there is something in the room that is hidden under an illusion…" Shepard said.

He quickly scanned the room again looking for a valve or spillway that would release the water, but there was nothing. He tried to see if the chair was a switch or lever or valve or anything that could release water, but it remained a chair. Shepard looked back at the buckling door to see it buckle more, increasing the flow of water into the room. The water touched his chin.

He looked straight up as the shackles on his legs tightened as his body tried to float on the water. Shepard gasped for air as the edges of his mouth slowly pulled water in, but then it hit him. He stopped feeling the tightness of the shackles. There were no shackles around his legs; they were illusions. Shepard laughed as he floated up to the top of the water, but then he looked around at the still rising water.

"Damn…"

Tali walked through the other varying rooms and outcroppings to the expansive Noveria colony. She walked into one room and found the largest swimming pool that she had ever seen in her life. She remembered Pragia and its amazing miracle spring. She began to feel nostalgic for the freedom of swimming in water. She wished that she could be in there right now, but the odds of her living in such a condition would be near impossible. She sighed as she walked over to the next room.

The next room appeared to be some sort of club. The music blared with thumping bass from the dance techno that matched the rhythm of the lights. The quarian bartender that was wiping off a glass was a pleasant surprise. She walked over to him and tried to ask him something, but she realized that the music was much to loud for her to be heard. She decided not to press the conversation any further and was about to rise and leave when she felt someone grab her hand and pull her into the large group of dancing people.

Tali stumbled as her balance was broken, but she quickly fell on the person that was dragging her. She looked up to see another quarian girl who had a puzzled look on her face.

"Hey! Your not my friend!" The quarian girl laughed.

"No… I'm not…" Tali yelled over the music.

"Do you want to dance with me anyways?" She asked.

Tali didn't want to say no as much as she did not want to dance, mainly because she didn't know how to dance. She turned to escape, but the mass of jumping people closed off all exits.

"Come on! It's easy!" the quarian girl said, moving her hands in front of her.

Tali looked at the girl quizzically. She decided that this was the best time to learn since she still had six days remaining in her small vacation. She moved her hands like the girl in front of her.

"You're too tense! Loosen up!" the girl said, laughing, beginning to swing her hips.

Tali looked at how the girl's movements matched the main beat of the song, the beat that Tali could feel vibrate her heart. She decided to try it to see what was so fun about dancing. She copied the girl exactly. Her knees bent down as she bobbed her hips back and forth. Eventually her body began to create its own pattern of dancing and her body loosened up.

"That's it! You've got it!" the quarian girl yelled.

"This is incredible!" Tali yelled happily.

Tali raised her hands up above her head as her body instinctually bobbed to the beat. Tali's spine began to mimic a wave as she drove a bend up her body that started at her hips. Tali barely even realized that the girl that had taught her how to dance to the upbeat techno was now right in front of her.

"You have a real knack for this!" The quarian yelled to Tali as she slowly put her hands on Tali's waist and made her swing even more.

Tali really began to enjoy herself as the beat of the club slowly melded into her soul. She felt alive and free like she wasn't a part of the suit. She became completely caught up in the beat of the music that she barely noticed that the girl's hands had slid from her sides to around her back and their bodies were pressed together. Tali was enjoying herself far too much to really care; she just assumed that this was a part of the dance or something.

The girl pushed away from her which Tali assumed was a sign that the song was ending, but the girl simply turned around and pushed her back into Tali, still moving her hips. Tali went with it like it was some sort of group dance thing between two friends. She also thought that she had to be doing something right when the crowd began to move away from them and cheer them on. Tali felt the hot sweat drip on her face as the physical strain of this dance began to take its toll which equally broke her out of the dancing trance.

She finally became aware of how inappropriately the girl was dancing on her. She quickly became disgusted and embarrassed at the same time. She wondered how long the song was going to last until she would be free from this girl. The girl turned around again and wrapped her arms around Tali's neck and held her helmet close to hers, obviously smiling.

"So are you enjoying yourself?" the girl asked.

"What do you think you are doing?" Tali asked.

"I'm having a blast with the most beautiful girl at the bar that's what I'm doing!" The girl yelled, lowering her hand down Tali's back.

Tali stopped the girl from going any further down her back.

"This isn't right…" Tali said to the girl.

"A lot of people have a problem with lesbian quarians, but I don't see what the problem is…" the girl teased.

Tali felt violated. She wanted to escape at the same time that she didn't want to hurt the girl's feelings and not making a big show of it.

"Uhm… I didn't get your name…" Tali said.

"Hani'Jorrihi!" the girl said, trying again to get a more intimate hold of Tali's hips, but Tali stopped her.

"Hani… I'm not a lesbian…" Tali said, almost painfully.

Hani stopped what she was doing and looked at Tali with shocked eyes.

"Wh-what?" Hani asked.

"Yeah…" Tali said, feeling her face burn.

"But how you danced with me… That was… that was intimate…" Hani staggered.

"I've never danced before… I thought that that was how people danced to the song…" Tali admitted.

Hani looked around the room quickly to make sure that no one was watching, but everyone was.

"Just take my hand and follow me…" Hani whispered.

Tali grabbed the girl's hand who quickly laced her fingers with Tali's and pushed her way through the cheering crowd. She opened the door to an empty hallway and quickly opened the side room. She pulled Tali and closed the door. The lights slowly dimmed on revealing a beautifully decorated room.

"What are you doing?" Tali asked.

"We need to wait till the steam blows over…" the girl said, her audio sensor pressed against the door.

"Let me go…" Tali said.

"Those men will eat you alive after that little stunt we pulled…" Hani said.

"You mean the stunt you pulled!" Tali said pointing at Hani.

"I'm sorry, but you were grinding on me as I was grinding on you…" Hani said looking over at Tali.

"So what?" Tali asked skeptically.

"They think you are a lesbian quarian… A beautiful one for that matter, if that flatters you…" Hani said.

"It would if this just didn't seem so wrong…" Tali said sitting down on the black couch.

"I'm sorry for what I did… I didn't know! I guess I was caught up in the moment…" Hani explained.

"What about your friend?" Tali asked.

"I didn't have one… I used it to pick you up…" Hani confessed.

"So those men out there think that you… and me… are… are…" Tali struggled for words.

"Yes… that we love each other…" Hani said.

*Back at the club*

"That was probably the hottest thing that I have ever seen two xenos do to each other!" One man yelled.

"You've got that right Dale! I've never seen two quarians go at it like that! Hoowee that made my day!" Another man yelled.

So Chip! What do you think they are doing in their room right now?" Dale asked.

"I bet they are 'Hooking up their suit environments'!" Chip teased.

"That's hot!" Dale chuckled.

"Probably almost as hot as the two Asari going at it on the extranet!" Chip yelled.

"I would pay anything to be in that room…" Dale wished.

"I would pay just to see that one by herself!" Chip yelled.

"The one in purple?" Dale asked.

"Hell yeah! That quarian had some serious curves on her!" Chip yelled.

"It's a shame that they are stuck in those suits…" Dale distressed over.

"I know! What a bummer!" Chip yelled angrily.

"Though I did hear about a human and quarian marriage happening not to many days ago! I guess she took her mask off for the kiss! I mean aren't quarians supposed to die if they take their suits off?" Dale asked.

"Yeah… I think so…" Chip reasoned.

"Then maybe there will be some action between those two…" Dale said raising his eyebrows.

"We better not try anything…" Chip whispered.

"Why?" Dale asked.

"Lorik Qui'in is back, and he has this place wired with his Synthetic Insights security sensors…" Chip whispered, looking around the room suspiciously like he was being watched right then and there.

"I thought he left after the Rachni incident two years ago?" Dale said.

"Shh… Here comes Monty…" Chip said.

Lorik stood in his security wing of Noveria looking at the video footage of the three complaining patrons. The shady figure beside him took no notice in the squabble. Instead its attention was more focused on the old footage of the two dancing quarians.

"Look at those three. Monty, Chip, and Dale. They are the Vermin of Noveria…" Lorik said angrily.

"We cannot bother ourselves in the trivial creepers of Noveria, Lorik. We have more important work to be doing." The strange figure said.

"Right… The quarian girl…"


	57. Chapter 57: Illusions and Fear

Tali sat on the couch of Hani's room with her head buried in her hands. Hani watched her pityingly.

"So what is your name?" Hani asked, keeping her distance from Tali.

"Tali'Zorah…" Tali mumbled.

"Thee 'Tali'Zorah'?" Hani asked in amazement. "The quarian who helped save the council and the galaxy?"

"Yeah that's me…" Tali said halfheartedly. "Bosh'tet!" Tali hit her fist on her leg.

"It wasn't that bad, Tali. I mean we could pass it off as just being friends…" Hani reasoned.

"No! You don't understand. I was to relax. I'm on a vacation, and I was to relax. It's felt like all I've done is cheat…" Tali buried her head in her hands again.

"Cheat…?" Hani slowly asked, but instantly caught sight of the bond wrap on her hand. "Bosh'tet… Why didn't I see that?"

Tali looked up at the strange quarian girl who was now beating herself up about what she had done; Tali began to pity the girl.

"It's not your fault… It's both of our faults…" Tali said.

"I'm sorry Tali…" Hani said.

"What's Shepard going to think?" Tali asked herself.

"Shepard? You're not…" Hani asked.

Tali could only nod her head at Hani's question. Hani was speechless.

"No way! You and Commander Shepard? A bonded couple? Wow!" Hani said, disregarding all personal space issues and sitting right beside Tali and grabbing her hand. Tali angrily stared at Hani.

"Sorry…" Hani said, releasing her and sitting on the other chair.

Tali felt the control over her emotions begin to break, but this time it wasn't anger that wanted to break through, but an unbridled, pained depression. She just wanted to cry at her bad luck. Everything always appeared to get the worse after she believed that she was doing good. Tali held the tears back at the bad luck and tried to look at it in positive light whichever luminosity that was.

"How am I going to explain this to Shepard?" Tali asked Hani.

"Just tell him it was a misunderstanding… I'm sure he will understand." Hani said.

"How can you even say that when you don't even know him?" Tali asked, feeling a chunk of the depression begin to burn with anger.

"I just assumed that he was a nice guy…" Hani said, hurt.

"I'm sorry Hani…" Tali said.

"I'm sorry too Tali… I didn't mean to… publicly rape you" Hani gave an unsure laugh to try to lighten the mood. Tali laughed slightly, but in the same unsure manner.

"I just want to forget about today… This is just too hard on me right now. I am to relax and enjoy myself on my vacation, and here I am becoming more stressed than I was when I got here…" Tali said, rising.

Hani rose too and walked over to the door. Hani flipped open the one way visor and scanned the halls before she opened the door for Tali to leave. Tali left rather stiffly and quickly walked down the hall away from the club. Hani watched her leave. She wanted to do something right for Tali to amend the mistake that she had done, but she didn't know what. She only stopped thinking about it when Tali rounded the corner and disappeared from view. Hani started to close the door when it suddenly stopped. She looked up to see the strong arm of a turian holding it open.

"Lorik?"

Shepard looked at the ever filling room. Something else had to be hidden or not what it appeared. He looked around at the corners. Nothing. He looked at the almost submerged door. Nothing. He was about to give up when he remembered something that he had seen when he was scanning the room. The light.

He looked up at the bright light and realized that it was a light fixture, but a hole in the ceiling. He stared at it happily and wanted to laugh, but the sudden cracking of the door made him look over at it. The door blew off of it's hinges sending in a torrent of water. The room began to fill faster than Shepard even deemed possible. He reached up for the edges of the illusionary hole and grabbed on. The sudden rush of water caused him to partially be whipped under the ceiling of the almost filled room.

Shepard's muscles bulged as the force of the water desperately clawed at his body trying to tear him in to the deadly current. He sighed with relief as the water finally filled the room and the water calmed. His arms barely pulled him out of the hole as he crawled on his hands and knees. The weight of his wet clothes was enough to tire him out and he flopped down with a wet thud on the ground. He looked around the room to see that the room was completely identical. He breathed out in frustration as he rose to his feet.

The side wall crackled like a computer program before a dark figure walked through it.

"What do you want now?" Shepard asked.

"I just wanted to tell you that I felt bad for leaving you alone so I decided to pick you up a friend…" The Shadow Broker pointed to the ceiling.

Shepard looked up to see a black hole open and a very surprised Krogan fall out of it. Shepard looked at the large Krogan in front of him and nearly collapsed as the added frustration made his head spin.

"Krog…?" Shepard asked.

The Krogan turned his severely scarred head over to look at Shepard. It was Krog. Shepard stared at the Krogan with angry eyes though they were not for him, but the darker figure that was standing beside him.

"I figured I would find you a very dear friend." The Shadow Broker said.

Shepard fell back down into a seated position as the Krogan rolled over and stood up.

"Great…" Shepard whispered to himself.

"So he got you too…?" Krog said.

"Obviously…" Shepard said swinging his arms out.

"Where's your quarian?" Krog asked.

"Vacation…" Shepard said angrily when he compared his position to hers.

"Where?" Krog asked.

Before Shepard could respond, the Shadow Broker interrupted.

"Noveria…" The Shadow Broker said.

Shepard turned his head up at the Shadow Broker.

"How do you…" Shepard started to ask.

"I know everything Shepard…"

"You've said this…" Shepard said.

"I know, but you always seem to forget, such a human flaw… That is why I'm glad that I'm not human…" And as the words left his mouth the transition to the human face vanished.

"You better not do anything to her…" Shepard threatened.

"Why would I do anything to her?"

"To get to me…"

"Get to you? Don't I have you right now?" The Shadow Broker asked, smiling widely.

Shepard could only sigh and shake his head. He was fed up with his games and puns. He looked over at Krog who was staring at the Shadow Broker intently. Krog flashed him a glance that Shepard understood. Shepard quickly turned and reached his arms out around the Shadow Broker's 'legs'. He felt something that more resembled a blast of air instead of anything solid. Krog went into a charge and hit the Shadow Broker who had just raised one hand. Shepard watched as the large Krogan and the hooded figure hit the wall.

Shepard quickly jumped to his feet just in time to see the fabric of space and time ripple where Krog was standing. Krog's body instantly catapulted back, hitting Shepard, sending both of them into the opposite wall. They both quickly stood back up from the impact and looked over at the hooded figure that still had one of its hands out in a fist.

"Do we really have to do this now?" The Shadow Broker asked.

Krog and Shepard nodded to each other and took flanking runs toward the Shadow Broker. The Shadow Broker appeared to turn in both of their directions which was strange and a little unnerving to Shepard though Krog disregarded it. The Shadow Broker split in half making two carbon copies of itself and charged at both Shepard and Krog. Krog merely lowered his head and dragged his Shadow Broker into the wall. Shepard slid into his Shadow Broker's 'legs' which he slid straight through.

Krog, instead of gloating over his successful charge jumped to the side as a pulse of interspatial energy collided with the ground. He quickly brought his fist into the Shadow Broker's face sending the back of its head into the wall that it had been smashed against. The Shadow Broker laughed as he split into two more Shadow Brokers.

Shepard quickly recovered from his slide and turned to the Shadow Broker that he had slid under. He quickly charged him and laid a hard hit into its head, but it felt like hitting a brick wall. It turned around and grabbed Shepard by the collar and carried him over to the wall where he held him up. Shepard struggled as he looked over to see Krog fighting two Shadow Broker like figures.

"You can't beat an idea Shepard. You can't beat knowledge…" Came the shadow Broker's voice that was heavily distorted and mixed between the dialects of every species.

Shepard looked around the room and tried to see if there were any illusions in it, but without a good idea of what was illusion or not, Shepard gave up quickly with the more pressing matter being the dark figure holding him up. He looked at the figure with scrutiny trying to find a weakness, but Shepard couldn't think of anything so he took a shot in the dark.

"What did they do to you?" Shepard asked.

The smile instantly faded from the figures face.

"Who?" The Shadow Broker asked.

"The people who made you like this…" Shepard said.

The Shadow Broker eased up his grip on Shepard and lowered him so was standing again. The other copies of the Shadow Broker stopped their beating of Krog.

"You know Shepard… that was pretty clever of you…" the Shadow Broker's smile smeared back on his face as he brought fist to Shepard's stomach.

Time slowed as the Broker distorted space-time around his stomach. The spatial disturbance caused the ground to blur into a fuzzy abstract painting that could barely be considered art, but instead of being shot to the other side of he room, Shepard saw the world around him fade from existence as another world formed around him. He saw Tali walking down the hall. He reached out to her and yelled her name before the world faded again and he fell back into the room he had left, halfway into the opposite wall.

Tali rounded the corner of the Noveria complex. She felt oddly cold in her enviro-suit. She made it halfway down the hallway when she suddenly heard Shepard's voice call out to her. She quickly whipped around to see a shadowy wisp of Shepard fade from existence.

"Shepard!" Tali yelled running to the spot where he had materialized.

She stood directly where he was and looked around, but there was no trace of him. The footfalls that quickly filled the other hallway brought Tali's attention back up. Lorik and a group of security personnel ran around the corner.

"Tali'Zorah. We meet again…" Lorik said.

"I'm surprised you remember me…" Tali said backing up slowly.

"I remember Shepard quite well, and I remember your pretty mask standing beside him." Lorik said.

"What is this about?" Tali asked.

"What do you think this is about?" Lorik asked.

Tali quickly turned and ran down the hall. Two guards came around the corner at about the same time she did. Tali quickly grabbed the one's head and smashed him into the wall and used his taser wand and shoved it into the other's crotch. She quickly looked over her shoulder to see Lorik and his guards running after her. She quickly picked up the other guard's wand and took off down the hallway.

A side door opened up revealing two more guards. Tali quickly pivoted on her foot as she slid towards them bringing a high velocity smash against one of the guard's face sending him in a spin as he fell. The other brought down his stun stick down to catch Tali off guard, but her other hand bit across the guard's legs making him slouch to his knees. She quickly stood up and hit the guard twice in the face with both weapons. The guard collapsed. Tali breathed hard as she looked down the hallway to see Lorik and his two guards run around the corner.

"Stop her!" Lorik yelled.

Tali sprinted away from the incoming guards. She almost hit the door as she ran at it. She just managed to get through it at the same time she had her Omni-tool opened and the circuitry of the door open to her. She felt the sweat drip off of one of her hairs and onto the lower portion of her helmet. She breathes quickly as the door sparked from being overloaded. She quickly turned and ran into the concealing crowd and hoped to escape her pursuers.


	58. Chapter 58: The Darkness Awaits

Tali tried to hurriedly run through the crowd at the same time that she was trying to blend in. She looked up over the heads to see the door open and a rather angry turian step from it. She quickly bowed her head down and tried to walk to the door to leave the room. She wanted to get back to her room and grab her supplies, but the idea of her room swarming with sensors, cameras, and guards for that matter dissuaded her from doing so. The door hissed open and she heard the distant yell of the turian telling his squad that she was leaving the room.

"Bosh'tet…" Tali cursed to herself as she ran down the hallway to the next large room.

She pushed past three strange humans; one was wearing a t-shirt that was graced with a floral pattern, the other skinny one was wearing an out-of-date leather jacket with possibly the most ridiculous hat, the third was obese and wasn't afraid to show it. Tali knocked the floral man over causing the other two to take up the entire hallway. This gave Tali enough time to gain a considerable lead in her flight. Tali's vision began to narrow as her heart desperately tried to pump blood to her head so that she could think, but the physical strain was only relieved by the wall of adrenaline that had took her over.

She rounded another corner and quickly pressed herself into a small dark room. She looked out into the crack of light that played tricks on her eyes. She forced her breathing to slow and quiet as she slowly backed up into the room, hoping, wishing, that they would not find her and that they would just run past. The quick footfalls began to rise in intensity. Tali's heart almost fell to a standstill; she backed up more. She could hear them running, running in her ears. They were so close. They were dangerously close. Tali wanted to sit down and cry at the misfortune that she was experiencing, but her iron will destroyed all notions of giving up.

Her hands tightened around the two metal wands that she was holding as she prepped herself to fight. Her heart almost jumped out of her chest when someone grabbed her from behind. She almost yelled out until she felt that familiar touch, but her heart still called for her to scream.

"Hani…?" Tali whispered.

"Shh…" Hani wrapped her arms around Tali and pressed a button on her suit; they instantly were cloaked.

The door to the room slammed open as a guard walked in with an assault rifle with a flashlight on it. His radio crackled loudly revealing to Tali the orders to take the quarian girl 'dead or alive'. She wanted to breath harder as the wound on her shoulder screamed back to life, but she held it. The man walked around the room looking in every corner, nook, and cranny. His legs came dangerously close to where Hani and Tali were concealed, but he quickly turned and left the room. They waited a few moments longer to confirm that he was gone.

"What are you doing here?" Tali whispered.

"What does it look like? I'm saving you…" Hani said, slowly taking her arms off of Tali which she quickly pulled back when Tali's eyes narrowed. "Sorry…"

"You shouldn't be doing this…" Tali said.

"Why not? I dragged you into this mess, and I'm going to get you out of it." Hani promised.

"You didn't drag me into this… this is far worse… worse than you can even imagine." Tali warned.

"Here take this…" Hani ignored her. She handed Tali a pistol as she pulled out one of her own.

"You shouldn't be doing this…" Tali said.

"I want to do this Tali… I want to help you…" Hani said.

Tali could hear the words that were going to follow those words and she shivered at the thought. Here she thought that she was going to be seduced and coaxed into cheating by some man, but here some quarian girl had fallen in love with her… Keelah…

She checked the clip to the pistol before she slowly walked over to the door and looked through the crack. Two guards were standing right outside the door with assault rifles. Their bodies blocked the other directions of the hallway so Tali wasn't too sure about jumping out guns blazing without knowing what was at either end of the hallway so she decided to wait for the guards to move.

Shepard felt the pain in his back as he slid from his dent in the wall. He felt the air rush from his body and his lungs desperately try to take it back in. He landed on his knees against the hard tile floor of the floor. He sprinkled a few drops of blood before he wiped it off and stood back up to face his enemy. He saw Krog had one of his Shadow Broker's by the neck while the other smashed him repeatedly with spatial bursts, but Krog still held on to the figure's neck. He faded from existence which was a kill in Shepard's book.

Shepard looked back to his Shadow Broker to see that he was still standing in front of, but he was laughing. Shepard glared at the Shadow Broker as he wiped the new stream of blood off of his lip.

"What are you laughing at?" Shepard asked, trying to make a joke of it.

"You, Shepard…" The Shadow Broker said.

"Why me?" Shepard asked, confused.

Shepard looked around the room to try to see if there was some trap or some object that he had materialized that would kill him, but Shepard instead looked back at the Shadow Broker that Krog was desperately trying to punch at though his mouth was basically a waterfall of blood. The Shadow Broker appeared to move in jerky movements that Shepard found unnatural when it hit him.

"Krog! The guy you're fighting now is an illusion!" Shepard realized.

Krog put his arms down and realized as another punch was thrown at him that he couldn't feel it. Shepard looked over at the other Shadow Broker, but he remained, but the turian cycle of his morphing face vanished. The Shadow Broker clapped his hands and laughed.

"Oh! Shepard! You don't know how much fun I am having!" The Shadow Broker laughed.

Shepard looked over at Krog who, for once in his life, sat down out of exhaustion. He turned his attention back on the Shadow Broker.

"My team is going to know that something is up! They will find out where I am, and they will stop you…" Shepard said angrily.

"Your team? Why would they think something is up?" The Shadow Broker asked.

He reached under his cloak and pulled out a radio.

"Shepard! This is Joker. How are things planet-side?" Joker's voice rang in the radio.

The Shadow Broker pressed the button to the radio and held it up to his mouth.

"Shepard here! Everything is going well, but I might have to be here a few days to wrap up the negotiations." The Shadow Broker said in Shepard's voice.

Shepard stared at the Shadow Broker in disbelief. He quickly mustered up enough strength and charged at the Broker. The Broker whipped his cloak and Shepard fell into what appeared to be a dark room with a single bar of light on the other side. He could see the glint of a quarian visor along with the distinct wrap around her hand.

"Tali!" Shepard yelled as he stumbled through the junk and rubble of the room. Tali quickly stood up, but she did not turn to face Shepard, but she unloaded her gun into the heads of the two guards that had turned to see what was happening in the door.

She slammed the door shut and turned on her Omni-tool to illuminate the room. Shepard was standing in the middle of the room, staring in disbelief at her.

"Tali?" Shepard asked, almost surprised that it was actually her, and how she had just shot two people when she was on vacation. "What is happening?"

"I was about to ask you the same question Shepard…" Tali said, slowly dropping her arm that had the pistol in it.

She started walking to him slowly at first, but with each breath her body quickened. She felt the tears begin to fall from her eyes as she finally reached Shepard, throwing her arms around him. She felt his warm safety that he always had around him soothe her broken heart.

"Keelah Shepard…" She said through her sobs and her tears.

"I don't know how long I have before he or it or whatever it is drags me back. You have to tell the crew that I have been captured by the Shadow Broker! He is holding me captive!" Shepard yelled, knowing that at any minute, any second, that he would simply wisp back to his torture chamber.

"What's wrong Shepard?" Tali asked, not wanting to let him go.

"Just tell the crew… tell them…" Shepard said.

"Shepard… I made a mistake…" Tali started to say, looking over at Hani.

"Everyone makes mistakes Tali…" Shepard said, hugging her tighter.

"No… I feel that I have cheated on you…" Tali said pushing him away.

Shepard's muscles tensed. "What do you mean Tali?" Shepard asked.

Tali looked over at Hani who silently rose and walked into the Omni-tool's light; she stood directly in front of the door. Shepard looked over at Hani and back at Tali.

"I must not be understanding this…" Shepard said in disbelief.

"What she is trying to say Shepard is that I coerced her into dancing… uhm… dirty with me. I wanted to seduce her and bring her back to my apartment so that we could… uhm… and she… kinda went along with it. But its not her fault! It's mine! I seduced her! I didn't tell her that I wanted to be with her! I even ignored her bond wrap!" Hani spilled out.

Shepard looked over at Hani and back at Tali. "Did you enjoy yourself Tali?" Shepard asked.

Tali, rather unnerved by the question, stared at Shepard in confusion. "What do you want me to say?" Tali asked.

"I want you to tell me if you enjoyed yourself." Shepard repeated, but this time with a smile.

"Yes…" Tali said, guiltily.

"And did you do anything intimate?" Shepard asked.

"No… not really…" Tali said.

"Then how did you cheat on me? All I am seeing is an uncomfortable interaction between two misunderstood people. I'm glad that you told this to me…" Shepard said, though his voice began to fade from existence.

"Shepard?" Tali asked as she felt the strength of his arms slowly fade from her sides. Shepard's mouth moved as he tried to yell her name, but she heard nothing. "Shepard! What's happening!"

Shepard quickly vanished into nothingness. Tali stared at the point where he was just standing. He fell through her fingers like sand. _What is going on?_ Tali opened her hand to see that she was still holding Hani's cloak field generator. She stood up and held out her hand to Hani.

"Here… take this and go home… I don't want you to get-" Tali started to say.

The erupted with a fury of bullets, many hitting Hani in her back. Tali ducked behind a crate as the bullets exploded around the room. The shooting stopped as she heard the small thud of Hani hitting the ground followed by a garbled breathing. Tali looked around the edge to see Hani on the ground trying to claw her way over to Tali, but her body appeared limp and non-responsive to her goal of hiding. Tali quickly activated the cloak field in an attempt to make it over to Hani, but the door opened revealing two other soldiers. One kept his gun on Hani while the other ran over to check her condition.

"Sir. We have her… alive, but she is in critical condition. Request the use of medical aid to stabilize her…" The soldier asked, pressing his hand up to his ear piece. "Right… Get a medic in here!" The soldier yelled. Tali slid back behind her crate and buried her head in her hands as she suppressed the tears and sobs of what Hani was going through because of her. Why…

Shepard rematerialized in the room. The Shadow Broker was still standing there with the same smile. Shepard didn't know if he was mad or simply confused.

"How are you doing that?" Shepard asked.

"I am giving you a chance to see her before you die." The Shadow Broker said.

"But you need me…" Shepard said.

"Correction… I needed you…" The Shadow Broker said.

"But… but…" Shepard clenched his fist as he felt hopelessly at a loss against the opponent that was in front of him. He couldn't lay a punch on him; he couldn't hurt him; he couldn't do anything to stop him.

He looked over at Krog who had slowly propped himself up on the wall. He turned back to the Shadow Broker to see him pull out a sword and start walking towards him. Shepard nodded at Krog as he made one last attempt at escaping. Krog charged again, but the Shadow Broker quickly side-stepped from his charge and brought the sword across his chest. Krog awkwardly stumbled a few steps before he fell to the ground. The pool of blood from his body made it all too clear what had happened. Shepard just stood against the opposite wall staring defiantly at the approaching dark figure. The figure pulled the blade back but hesitated for just a second.

"Do it you egotistical bastard!" Shepard yelled.

In response the Shadow Broker thrust the sword forwards into Shepard's chest. He could feel the sword grind past his ribcage and destroy his fragile heart. He felt the sword exit his body and the noise of it stab into the wall. Shepard could feel an instant cold, a darkness begin to sweep over him as his body began to give way. His vision blurred of the figure staring at him that appeared to be neither man nor machine, but a dark void of black particles. He coughed up some blood as his life desperately held on, but a final release of his lungs caused him to finally give way and fall completely limp on the sword. Total darkness consumed him.


	59. Chapter 59: Resurrection

Tali sat in the dark of the room and tried to make heads and tails of the recent events. Shepard had mysteriously appeared and told her to tell the crew that he had been captured. She wondered how she would even be able to do that when every comm-link and communication terminal was being watched by Lorik's men. She rose up and looked at the door that was hidden in the darkness with eyes that yelled her bravery. She picked up her pistol and the stun wand and ran over to it.

She opened the door slowly keeping her gun trained at anything that moved. The trail of blood behind her reminded her of Hani which made her less afraid of her pursuers. She ran over to the wall and looked around the corner to see that the hall was empty. She assumed as much since they thought Hani was Tali. She holstered the gun underneath her robes and walked out of the hallway into the large crowd of people outside. The security checkpoint sat right beside the communication terminal. Tali could only hope that they had not found out that they had the wrong girl. She briskly walked over to the terminal, and she even managed to give a friendly wave to the guard on duty.

She quickly opened the comm-link and boosted its strength and sent a message directly to the Normandy saying all she could about the situation. She cursed at the machine that loudly told "Mrs. Tali'Zorah" thank-you for using Comm-Co. The guard looked at her for a few seconds before he slowly went to his radio. Tali looked at him and at the people that were still aimlessly walking around her. She turned and ran into the crowd as she heard the man yell that they had the wrong quarian.

Tali burst her way through a hinged service door and ran through the crowdless hallways and back-ways through Noveria. She rounded a corner and tried to stop as a large dark shape enveloped her. The world went black.

She woke up in a security room by what she could tell. Lorik was pacing and looking nervous while the other guards in the room shifted their weight in awkward ways. Tali wanted to talk, but the strange grogginess that had flashed over her caused her to mumble a few words of incoherence that brought Lorik to a halt. He looked over at Tali and walked over to her.

"Tali… I'm sorry…" Lorik said quietly.

She glared at him. "Liar…"

"Tali please… you have to understand my position I'm…"

"Getting friendly with the prisoners…" came the Shadow Broker's voice. He emerged from the dark shadow of the room and walked over to Tali's side. "Pleasure to meet you Mrs. Tali… uhm… Tali'Shepard now?" The Shadow Broker asked.

"Tali'Zorah…" Tali said, still trying to catch her breath.

"I always thought that married couples changed their names?" The Shadow Broker asked, though he sounded like he was wanting her to inform the other people in the room more than he wanted to know the answers, answers he probably already knew.

"He wanted me to keep my heritage intact. Everyone knew that we were married… we didn't need to change our names to say that…" Tali explained.

"And the Admiralty Board would have a cow if you did, correct?" The Shadow Broker asked.

Tali sighed. "Correct" She struggled with the bonds that were tied around her hands.

"I bet you are wondering why I, along with you, are here in this beautiful place." The Shadow Broker said.

"I was going to ask you where Shepard is?" Tali asked.

The Shadow Broker cracked a smile as he walked over to Tali's other side. "Do you want to see?"

* * *

Joker sat at his terminal at the helm of the ship bookmarking pages on the extranet, pages that EDI did not care to be running though her system.

"These could be harmful to my systems Jeff…" EDI said.

"EDI you are state of the art in electronic warfare… What virus out there could possibly…?" Joker started to ask when an urgent message popped up on his screen.

"Hey there's a message from Tali!" Joker skimmed through the message.

He almost lost his mind and broke his leg as he jumped forward reading the message.

"Garrus! Miranda! Thane! Get in a shuttle and get planetside! Shepard's in trouble!" Joker announced through the intercom system.

* * *

Tali shifted her weight in the chair uncomfortably when the Shadow Broker pulled over a viewing station's screen. He snapped his fingers revealing a room with Shepard standing in it while the Shadow Broker walked towards him with a sword. Tali began to shake and lean forwards as she watched the Shadow Broker lift his arm back to stab, but Shepard started to say something defiant. She smiled that he stood up to him, but she quickly felt her heart lurch as the Shadow Broker plunged the sword through what felt like both of their hearts.

She watched in horror as she watched the screen. She watched as Shepard struggled with the handle of the blade, but she saw the strength leaving him. The weaker Shepard became as he was impaled in the sword the more the tears in her eyes fell from her face. She looked over at the cloaked Shadow Broker and back at the screen just in time to see the last flicker of life fade from him and his body go limp. Tali's heart stopped for the longest time in her life.

"Shepard…" Tali said to herself in disbelief.

"Yes… Your beloved Shepard… dead." The Shadow Broker teased at her.

"No. No. No. Shepard no." Tali said leaning to the extent that the bonds would allow her to lean towards the screen.

The memory of her father fell back in her mind as she stared at the screen. She had lived her life raised by her father, and now it would seem that she was going to have to raise her child by herself.

"You Bosh'tet!" Tali screamed as she tried to jump off out of her bonds. "Why! Why did you kill him! What did he do wrong! What did he do to deserve this!" Tali yelled as her collective grief quickly converted to rage.

"He didn't deserve it. He needed it…" The Shadow Broker said. Lorik rubbed his head and walked over to the door to leave; the Shadow Broker stared at him which caused him to stop walking.

"Now Tali… you shouldn't be mad at me… You should be thanking me. I have done you a service." The Shadow Broker said.

Tali glared at him and breathed heavily as her hatred of the man in front of him grew even more.

"Thank you? Why should I thank you? You took everything from! You took away the only person that understood me! The only person that shared the love that I had with him with me! Why should I thank you for that Bosh'tet!" Tali angrily spouted.

"I have not taken anyone away from you. I have merely strengthened him. He is ready…" The Shadow Broker said.

"Strengthened him? You killed him!" Tali cried, the sorrow returned.

"Watch…" the Shadow Broker said as he faded from existence.

* * *

The darkness of death, the fear of loss, the coldness of being alone wisped in the infinite void. A body floated through the zero light environment with no direction or bearing, lost and forever floating. At the point of accepting the void in front of it, the body lurched as the body resisted the grip of death. Light exploded and illuminated Shepard's face as he fought his head up from the strength of death's grip. He willed himself up into the light and emerged in a room with a dark figure walking away from him. He looked down at the large blade that protruded from his chest and watched it vanish. The pressure on his chest quickly relieved as the memory of the blade vanished like dust in the wind.

Shepard rose silently and looked down at Krog's body and watched it vanish too. Shepard took in a needed breath of air that graced his lungs, but he did not do so loudly enough for the Shadow Broker to notice him. He felt the power of his biotics fill his body as the anger against the Shadow Broker grew beyond Shepard's limits. He felt the charge's power exceed that it had ever had reached before.

The Shadow Broker turned around just in time to see Shepard's power match that of an Asari Matriarch. He laughed as Shepard catapulted himself into him and smashed the full force of his energy into the Shadow Broker. The Shadow Broker stood his ground, but the outline of his figure bend and twisted. The clear and present danger that the Shadow Broker was became obvious for only a split second, but it was enough to let Shepard know that it was impossible for him to win this battle.

The Shadow Broker turned around with his figure blurred and his image cracked.

"Shepard… How do you feel?" The Shadow Broker asked as his image slowly began to repair itself.

"What are you?" Shepard asked.

"I've been many things Shepard… Something that I haven't been, is alive…" The Shadow Broker said as the final cracks sealed themselves and his image regained focus.

"So what are you?" Shepard asked stepping back from the non-human, non-salarian, non-turian, non-asari, non-living. "Reaper? Geth?"

"Neither Shepard though Reaper would be the closest you could consider me…" The Shadow Broker stated.

"What can you possibly be that is close to the Reapers?" Shepard asked, backing up slowly from the impossible figure in front of him.

"I possess mass effect technology that allow me to produce shifts in space and time, and I can shift my position to most anywhere in the galaxy, but this does not make me immortal. The information you gave me showed me how vulnerable all of us really are. Do you think that the Reapers are going to destroy the galaxy? It would appear like that at first, but that is only a rouse. Their main goal is to control us, everyone, to be their slaves. Only the one species that they deem the strongest gets the honor of becoming one of their ranks."

"So why all of this?" Shepard asked looking around the destroyed room.

"If they controlled you then they would control the hearts and minds of the species that they want, humans." The Shadow Broker informed.

"So why did you help Saren before?" Shepard asked trying to get all the information that he could at this time.

"At first it appeared that they wanted the turians who, in my biased opinion, appeared to be the dominate species in the galaxy, but once I found them using him merely as a slave, I knew that couldn't be right. I wasn't going to help the Reapers Shepard." The Shadow Broker said.

Shepard didn't know if he should be mad or thankful at the Shadow Broker's actions. He stepped back a few more steps until he was right back where he started.

"What are you?" Shepard asked one last time.

The Shadow Broker looked at Shepard briefly before his face appeared to melt. A large buzzing noise filled the room as the Shadow Broker's cloak began to break apart into small black dots. Shepard stared at the impossible and eerily beautiful sight of him disintegrate into a cloud of black particles that slowly vanished into the thin air.

"Maybe another time Shepard…" The Shadow Broker said.

* * *

Tali sat in the room staring at the screen in amazement. She wanted to jump in the air when Shepard stood up and attacked the Shadow Broker, but when the Shadow Broker pulled off his little stunt, Tali didn't know what to do. She stared at the screen that slowly began to close with static. Right as the screen flickered out she heard a thud behind her. She tried to turn around, but she could only catch a glimpse of Hani's body behind her.

"Hani!" Tali yelled.

Lorik walked over to Tali and untied the ropes as he was ordered to before hand. Tali quickly jumped up and ran over to Hani who breathed gruffly on the ground.

"Hani! Hani! Are you okay?" Tali yelled at her.

She tossed her head over to Tali, an obvious sign of the fever that was taking her, and she tried to speak. Tali looked over at Lorik who avoided eye-contact with her.

"You guys need to save her!" Tali pleaded. "You have to do something!"

"We've tried Tali… We didn't think that this was going to happen… we didn't mean to…" Lorik said.

Tali looked at Hani with hurt eyes.

"Hani… Hani listen to me…" Tali said.

Hani looked at Tali with delusional eyes. She tried to focus, but her life was slowly fading from her. "What is it Tali?" Hani asked faintly.

"I wanted to tell you… I… I wanted to tell you that I… I mean if I wasn't with Shepard… I…" Tali stammered.

"You don't have to lie to me Tali to make me feel better…" Hani said.

"I just want you to hear it from someone…" Tali said.

"I want to hear it from someone that means it…" Hani said, weaker than her last words.

Tali stared at the poor quarian girl in her arms. She had to do it, and she knew it. She put herself in Shepard's shoes. Shepard would try to make anyone happy before they passed away in any way that he could. Tali looked down at Hani and imagined it was Shepard in her arms. She knew that she had to do something right for her.

"I love you…" Tali said.

Hani laughed. "That almost sounded like you meant it…"

"I mean it…" Tali said, the tears streaming off of her face.

Hani started to sob weakly. "Tali…" Hani said grabbing her hand.

Tali held onto her as her grip slowly faded. She felt the biggest rush of sorrow when it fell limply to her side. Tali stood up, confused and lost in her thoughts. She looked down at Hani who was now laying still on the ground. She looked at the console to see the image restored with Shepard being helped out of the room by Garrus and Thane. She smiled at the image, but the thought of Hani ruined her vacation.


	60. Chapter 60: The Broker's Intent

Tali managed to leave the security room with Lorik and the rest of the individuals without turning back to see Hani laying on the ground, she couldn't bear to look at the poor girl's body that had sacrificed herself when she barely knew her. Tali viewed Hani as a hero, someone that would remain in her memory with the rest of the people that had sacrificed their lives for her. Tali wanted to glance back at the door to the room, but even that was painful. She wanted to forget about Hani and the mistakes of meeting her, her words to Shepard, the image of Hani jerking with each shot hitting her back and the soft thud of her collapse.

The Shadow Broker's dark shape stood over the body of the barely living quarian. He sighed as he bent down and placed his hand on her chest. In what best could be described as melting, the Broker's hand fell apart along with his arm and part of his body onto her. Hani's body was covered in a blanket of small black dots that pulsed all along her body. Thirty seconds of quiet pulsing the small dots took on a more violent role. They quickened their pace and small bolts of energy shot forth as Hani's body jerked back to life. A quick and sudden breath of Hani caused the small dots to quickly reform back into the Shadow Broker's arm. He stepped back into the shadows and slowly disappeared from the room.

Hani sat up and looked around the room before she looked down at her suit to see the holes that had been sealed.

"How did those get there?" Hani asked herself.

She looked around the dark security room, confused.

"Where am I?" She asked herself, but no one answered her.

She turned to the door to the room and walked out into Noveria. She almost smacked herself in the head when she realized where she was.

"Maybe I shouldn't have been so wild at that club…" Hani rubbed her head. "I can't even remember what happened there. I hope I didn't do anything wrong…" Hani said.

Tali had walked back to her shuttle station and called the vacation a failure and ended it. She jumped into the shuttle and launched into orbit of the planet, preferring the quiet solitude of space than the crowded vendors of Noveria. She started the long and painful process of forgetting about Hani emotionally, but keeping her death a memoriam to why she was fighting for the galaxy.

* * *

Shepard sat in the med-bay of the Normandy with almost a blank stare at the wall. Chakwas had been scanning him for any injured, but all she could find were a few changes in brainwave activity which was enough to keep him in the med-bay until further notice.

"Arriving at Noveria. Tali'Zorah's shuttle will be retrieved shortly." Joker said over the intercom.

The mention of his wife's name perked Shepard out of his deep thought and he looked over to Chakwas who gave Shepard a knowing nod. Shepard stood up and walked out of the med-bay and into the elevator. He didn't know what he was going to do when she disembarked her shuttle. He decided to go with the flow and see what condition Tali was in at the present.

Shepard stood in the hangar uneasily as the shuttle docked and the door slowly fell. Tali stepped out with some strength at first, but seeing Shepard standing waiting for her made her freeze up. She felt something fill her throat and her eyes blur as she felt her emotions that she had bolstered the entire shuttle ride fail and fall beneath her feet. Shepard felt the same way when he saw Tali standing at the door to the shuttle unharmed. He was so thankful to see her that his emotions broke down.

Both of them started out with a slow walk that quickly broke into a run. Tali almost jumped into Shepard's chest as she buried her head in his neck and cried.

"Never again Shepard! Never again!" Tali cried into his shoulder.

"Don't worry Tali… I will never let you go again. Never…" Shepard said, glad to feel Tali's gentle touches on his back and the rough, hard helmet against his head.

Tali heaved in a large sob and pressed herself harder against Shepard. She didn't want to be away from the man that she had seen die three times and each time he came back. Was it fate? Tali didn't care at the moment as she felt Shepard rub her back and shush in her ear that everything was going to be okay.

"Someone died for me Shepard…" Tali managed to bring up.

"The girl who was in the room with you?" Shepard asked.

"…yes…" Tali said painfully.

"Use her memory to drive you Tali. These are the people that we are protecting. These people are the family that we have to hold together no matter how hard it is." Shepard said.

Tali felt a tear fall down her cheek as she smiled at Shepard's words. "I thought the same thing…"

* * *

Hani walked back to her room and found her spare robe. It wasn't the bronze color that she enjoyed wearing, but she still enjoyed the dark green robes. She untied her tattered and shot up robes and through them off the side to be cleaned. She walked over to a mirror and struck a few poses until she grunted at what she saw.

"I don't even look like the same person! I look like… like… a gorgeous green quarian instead of a beautiful bronze quarian… Great! Now I'm going to have to tell all of my friends that I changed my robe color! Bosh'tet!" Hani yelled at the mirror.

She turned a couple more times and stuck out her butt to see if the green extenuated it in anyway. She nodded a few times at her new look. She grinned under her mask as she made a full turn and landed with a jut of her hips.

"Hani'Jorrihi, you are one sexy quarian…" and with that she pranced out of her room to go party and hopefully pick up some nice looking quarian women or maybe an asari or two. She felt adventurous as the blare of the thumping techno made her legs crave to dance. She ran over to a lonely asari girl at the bar and grabbed her hand and tore her out onto the dance floor.

"Hey! You're not my friend!" Hani yelled over the bass.

* * *

"EDI. Do you have anything that covers nanobots?" Shepard asked.

"Nanobots are still in the latter stages of experimentation with signs of great promise in the medical field." EDI explained.

"Are there any Cerberus experiments using nanobots?" Shepard asked.

"Only a few in the galaxy." EDI explained.

"Has there been any problems with these sites?"

"None that has been reported."

"Are any of these experiments producing AI nanobots?"

"That is far beyond the level of nanobot technology that we possess at the moment Shepard."

"How about nanobots that can make mass effect fields to transport itself to different locations?"

"The technology of the mass relays are still mysterious to us Shepard. We cannot make mass relays nor can we make anything that is capable of doing what the mass relays give us."

"Would you think the protheans had this technology?"

"Perhaps, but my history of prothean technology is very limited.

Shepard sat and rubbed his chin as he thought about the way the Shadow Broker had so easily learned the ways of indoctrination. He also noticed that when the Shadow Broker broke apart, he heard a buzzing sound that could be produced by the million motors of nanobots flying in the air. Sure it was only a theory, but the age and style that the Shadow Broker processed information and actions appeared to mechanical, yet this mechanical action was much too advanced to be anywhere near the level that the galaxy was at now.

Shepard walked over to his console and opened the blank document that would send a message to the Shadow Broker when needed.

"Are you a nanobot swarm?"

A few moments later a message returned.

"yes…"

"Were you made by the Reapers?"

"no…"

Protheans?"

"Yes…"

"One last question, why are you giving me these answers? I mean, I don't think I should even trust you at all."

"You are asking the right questions…"

"Are you a Reaper?

"Partially…"

"Partially?"

"I was made by the protheans centuries ago. They took Reaper technology from the mass relays and added an AI into a nanobot swarm that they discovered could move in such a way to generate a charge that would allow the bots to function as miniature mass relays…"

Shepard sat back in his chair at this flood of information. He rubbed his chin thoughtfully at the rare and valuable information that the Shadow Broker had just given him and wondered if he should he accept it as truth.

"Think I'm lying Shepard?" came a voice behind him.

Shepard turned around, not the least bit surprised to see the Shadow Broker standing in the middle of the room holding the prothean ball that pulsed strangely to the Shadow Broker's touch.

"I just don't know if I should trust you…. You did try to kill me… and Tali… and my crew… and Liara…" Shepard slowly listed.

"I don't try Shepard… I could have killed any of you at anytime that I wanted, but I am not stupid Shepard. You will need everyone to even come remotely close to surviving this war that is fast approaching…" the Shadow Broker said, placing the ball down on the table, smiling.

"You sound like you know how this is going to play out…" Shepard said leaning back in his chair.

"I've seen what the Reapers are capable of Shepard. I just needed to have a jolt of the past to restart the lost information that is stored in all of my… well me." The Broker laughed.

"So now that you had that…"

"Yes… I know what needs to be done for your survival… well… the survival of life in this galaxy. You may be a causality in this whole event, like many people… I have updated your computers with all of the available data covering the history and death of the prothean people. Study it and give us hope that life will live this time… I may not be so lucky as I was last time…"

"Don't worry… we will not lose…"

"That's what I like to hear…" the Shadow Broker vanished.

Shepard sat in his dark room and looked at the soft glow of his fish tanks and computer screen. He looked out the window to see a faint reflection of himself floating with the stars. Shepard sighed before he turned back to his computer to sift through the messages.

* * *

Tali stood at her station in engineering though her movements were slowed when she remembered Hani dying in her arms. Every time she blinked the person dying in her arms changed. First it was Hani, then it was her father, then it was different members of her squads. Each had given their lives to protect her at all costs. She felt the tears jerk at her again, but she wasn't about to cry in front of Ken and Gabby.

She reached into her pocket and pulled out the next syringe in the series and injected herself with it. No one was going to die trying to protect her again. She promised herself that this time she was going to make herself safe and reduce all chances of anyone risking their lives for her. She was simply fed up with the sacrifices that had been made for her when she had made no such sacrifices in her life.

A small beep on her console broker her out of her trance. Instead of crying for those that gave their lives to her she decided to listen to Shepard and used their actions to power her motivation and resolve; she wasn't going to let anything befall this ship and crew. She promised that to herself.

Gabby and Ken worked at their station silently for the past few days. Ken was worried about Gabby for being 'unnaturally quiet and reserved around him", but Gabby brushed him off, unaware that she was proving his point. She thought about what that man or whatever he was had told her. She worked through every possible outcome, but the one she barely thought about was mutiny. She could never see Shepard passing off his crew to please Tali; Shepard tried to please everyone. She nodded and stuck with that answer which grew on her.

She looked back at the mistrust that she had fell into when the strange figure's words had come true, but from what she could tell it merely strengthened her support of Shepard. She saw that any such action of getting rid of the crew would not benefit Tali who seemed happy with them in the room with her. Every once and awhile Kal came down to talk to her, but she always appeared to avoid any conversations with him. As rude as it was to think about, it showed Gabby that she preferred variety in the people around her and was 'bored' with her people.

Gabby smiled as she turned to Ken and punched him in the arm for staring at her.

"What are you staring at Ken?" Gabby asked.

"I'm sorry Gabby, but I thought Tali had replaced you with a robot or something." Tali looked over at the mention of her name. "I mean you come in here and don't say a word… only Tali could make such a perfect model of you!" Ken joked, while Tali broke out giggling and Gabby socked him another in the arm Ken laughed at seeing Gabby finally easing up.

"Jerk!" Gabby yelled, happily.

"I got Tali to laugh! That is a record in my book! Maybe Shepard will give me a pay raise or something, I am running low on credits."

"That's because you bet it all away!" Gabby laughed.

"I see it as an investment…"

"I see it as Shepard not paying you… I'm surprised that he just doesn't keep your paycheck when he just takes it away from you at the end of the day…" Gabby joked.

"Once I find a pattern in his moves he will start paying me money from his paycheck!" Ken boasted.

"I would like to see that…" Tali said, walking over to the group.

"You should join us again Tali. You're pretty good…"

"Thanks Ken…" Tali said feeling much happier to be on the Normandy, working again.

She rubbed her stomach at the thought of her future child and smiled at the thought of taking care of him or her for that matter. He or she will be the first of his or her kind, a milestone in quarian and human physiological evolution. Tali smiled as she found herself surrounded by close friends and people who understood her, all of them.


	61. Chapter 61: Symbiotic Relationship

Much of the Normandy was dark and quiet as the galaxy appeared to finally be united against the Reapers, but that was short lived in Shepard's eyes. He was glad that he had gained the support of the mercenary groups, quarians, geth, but more surprising, the help of the Shadow Broker. He looked at his inbox on his personal computer to see the number of distress signals and disorder in the galaxy had barely dropped. The sigh that Shepard gave as he flipped through each message represented an understatement in his frustration.

Shepard flipped open a book to pass the time, but the idea that he was going to coerce the Council to give their support to him which could take up to three years which would be too late to make any plans or defenses at that point. Shepard rubbed his chin and flipped open another message. Junk. Shepard looked over at the prothean ball that the Shadow Keeper had been playing with and saw that it rippled when he moved instead of growing and shrinking. Shepard shook his head at the distraction and focused back on how he was going to persuade the Council to join him.

The thought of going the bureaucratic wall of papers and process would drive Shepard completely bonkers, especially since he hadn't rested in a few days which was taking his toll. He thought that he could go on vacation with Tali, but the idea of asking Tali if she wanted to go on a vacation felt wrong after what she had been through on her 'vacation'. He gave another heavy sigh as anything to relieve his stress appeared to make others stressed. No escape. Shepard buried his head in his hand and groaned loudly.

"Shepard?" He heard Tali ask and he looked up to see her walking daintily up to him.

"Yes? What do you need honey?" Shepard asked trying to make decent husband pleasantries.

"Why would I need honey?" Tali asked sitting on the side of Shepard's desk, staring at him.

"It's just a pleasantry Tali…" Shepard explained, smiling at her naivety.

"Asking someone if they need honey?" Tali asked.

"I was calling you honey." Shepard answered, almost laughing as he felt his stress slowly dissipate from his mind.

Tali narrowed her eyes at him. "Why…?" Tali asked.

"Well isn't it obvious Tali?" Shepard asked. Tali stared at him at a loss. She shook her head. "Because you are just so sweet!" Shepard yelled as he quickly stood up and swept her off his desk and held her up on his chest with her face by his.

Tali giggled as Shepard spun her around in the bed room. "Shepard! Stop it! Put me down!" Tali squealed.

"Not until you kiss me!" Shepard teased her.

"Shepard!" Tali squealed again.

"Don't make me throw you!" Shepard toyed.

"You wouldn't do that to your- AHH!" Tali yelled as Shepard threw her up in the air over the bed.

Tali landed on the bed laughing and Shepard flopped down right beside her catching his breath. Tali turned her head as she reached over and grabbed his hand, rubbing her fingers against the back of his hand. They both pressed the palms of their hands together and stretched out their fingers before Tali's hand fell over into Shepard's fingers and their hands interlocked. Tali used his hand to pull herself closer to him as she brought her opposite hand across Shepard's chest, pulling herself up on her side so she was pressed against Shepard's side.

Tali took her hand that she had placed on Shepard's waist and slowly rubbed his chest and feeling his chest rise and fall as he took in the breaths of air that lingered in the room. Of all the times she had been in Shepard's room, this occasion felt fresh and knew like they were totally different people. She stared at Shepard who appeared to have changed. She began to look at herself and saw how much she had changed in this amount of time. Tali sighed.

"Shepard…" Tali whispered in his ear.

Shepard turned his head and locked eyes with his quarian wife who still twitched her eyes all over his face when she looked at him. He smiled at her as he reached up and unclipped her mask revealing her face. Tali reached out with her hand and ran her fingers on Shepard's face, gently feeling the roughness of his cheekbones and the softness of his temples. Shepard too moved his hand up to Tali's face who buried it in his. She smiled softly as he slowly brushed her hair out of her face and behind her ear.

"Tali…?" Shepard asked lovingly to her.

"Yes Shepard…?" Tali asked pressing her face more into his hand, enjoying his touch that never felt old.

"I didn't want to bring this up but…" Shepard started to say, keeping eye contact.

Tali's eyes widened slightly from his words. "What did you want to bring up?" Tali asked.

"We, as in both of us… together, should go on a…" Shepard started.

"Don't say it!" Tali warned him.

"Small relaxing excursion…" Shepard said, smiling.

"Both of us?" Tali asked.

Shepard shook his head playfully as Tali ran her hand through his hair before she completely turned herself onto her stomach. She swung her legs back and forth as she thought about the proposition though she already knew the answer and that Shepard knew what it was going to be.

"I would love that Shepard…" Tali said, staring over her slender shoulder at Shepard.

"We can go anywhere you want Tali." Shepard said, looking down the sloping curve of Tali's back that she was bending even more to get Shepard's attention.

"I want to see Earth." Tali said.

"Earth?" Shepard asked, a bit unbalanced by the request.

"Yes Earth. You've seen the Flotilla and Rannoch, and all that I have seen is your moon and Earth from a distance.

"It has been awhile since I have been there…" Shepard reminisced.

"So we can go?" Tali asked, excited.

"I think we both need to go there and see how it has changed since I left it." Shepard smiled though his mind regretted making this decision as much as his mind told him that he had to get this out of his mind before he did anything else.

Shepard turned onto his stomach and ran his hand up the curve of Tali's back. Tali lifted the top of her body up as he went up her body so he would have a steeper slope. She giggled at the tender touches that he always graced her with. He let his hand fall down her back and return to his side. Tali's eyes had slowly closed as Shepard had rubbed up her back, but now they remained closed as she sighed out from the ecstasy of sensual feelings coursing through her back.

She looked over to Shepard and pushed him over so he was on his back before she crawled over on top of him, bending slightly to give him small tender kisses. Every once in awhile she would feel him bite her lip so she countered by biting his lip. Tali wouldn't classify the kisses as passionate, but she did feel the heat of love burn and boil through both of their soft lips with each touch. She listened to the small smacks that their lips made every time that they pulled off of each other only to return.

After one of the kisses, Tali levitated her head above Shepard's lips with her eyes closed. She took a few breaths out as she took in Shepard's breath that she had been tasting all of this time. Shepard reached up and disengaged the seals on the outer layer of her hard metal helmet and pulled the pieces out from under the hood that he kept in place. Tali looked at the sides of her hood and was about to sweep both of her hands back to push it off, but Shepard sat up quickly and locked lips with her creating a more passionate kiss. Instead of a small smack, this kiss lasted five seconds before Shepard and Tali opened their mouths again to lock around the others so that they could taste each other.

Tali grabbed onto both sides of Shepard's mouth as she slowly rocked back and forth trying to bury her mouth deeper into his. Each consecutive kiss became longer and more passionate. Eventually Shepard lifted his arms up and Tali quickly slid it off, breaking their fury of kisses for only a second before they were back at it. Tali took a small break as she took breaths to compensate for her fast beating heart. She looked at the scars that plagued Shepard's chest, but found them only as memories instead of imperfections.

She placed one finger on Shepard's chin before she came in again, kissing him sideways so that their mouths fit together like fittings for an engine. Tali turned her head so that each kiss had her head in the opposite direction. Tali sat up long enough to unfasten her gloves from her hands. She slid them across Shepard's chest and tried again to push back her robes, but Shepard stopped her again, no words needed to be spoken as Shepard rubbed his hands on Tali's and weaved his fingers with hers.

Tali watched her fingers fumble around with Shepard's fingers which to her felt like foreplay, but still felt innocent compared to what they did afterwards. She breathed out heavily again as Shepard carried her hand up to his mouth and began to kiss it. Tali laughed as his lips tickled them.

"Do you like my fingers more than my lips Shepard?" Tali teased.

"Nonsense…" Shepard said, rising back into a seated position with Tali still on his lap. He buried his mouth into her again as his hands slid in opposite directions on her back, unfastening buckles and clips to her enviro-suit only. Eventually, Tali found that he had unfastened most of her suit, but not her robes, which were still firmly tied around her body. She unclamped the gold metal adornments around her neck and slowly slid her enviro-suit out from under her robes that she kept on.

Shepard stared at the half-naked quarian in front of him with only the quarian robes blocking her most private of lady parts, but it only served as a miniskirt. Beyond that, Tali was completely exposed. She jumped back onto Shepard who was sitting and staring at his beautiful wife as she undressed. He fell back as she swallowed his moth again, but this time with more of her skin touching him. Shepard found the idea of keeping her robes on to be a pleasant and exciting change in their love life as it appeared to make Tali more confident than she normally was when she took the lead.

Tali and Shepard pressed their bodies together and felt each other breath heavily with their lungs rising and falling together in unison. Tali felt that made them like one being, one entity, one soul in the room. She felt her love for Shepard grow with each matching breath as her heart slowed and matched Shepard's loud heartbeat. A smile stretched across Tali's face as her body calmed slightly from the recent excitement, but that was merely holding her breath so that she would be even more excited when everything took off, but she didn't know who would break first.

* * *

Kal sat in the armory of the Normandy polishing one his rocket launchers when Jack walked into the room. Kal looked up to see the barely clothed, tattooed, bald woman walking towards him. His arm stopped polishing as she approached, but it still moved in a small up and down motion as the residual memory of moving echoed in his mind.

"Hello Ma'am." Kal said.

"Kal right?" Jack asked.

"That would be correct Ma'am." Kal said formally.

Jack pulled over a chair, and turned it the wrong way before she sat in it.

"What do you need? Kal asked.

"You're a soldier right? Quarian Marines?" Jack asked, blowing off Kal's question.

"That would also be correct… Why all of the question?" Kal asked.

"Maybe I like you…" Jack said staring at him.

Kal froze for a second before he managed to ask. "Do you like me?" Kal asked.

"And what if I do?" Jack asked.

"Then I would have to wonder why." Kal explained, approaching the question cautiously.

"Maybe I'm like Shepard and want the taste of something other than human." Jack said, unflinching.

"You want to taste me?" Kal asked.

"I want to see what you look like under that suit." Jack stated, leaning closer to him.

Kal swallowed the hard lump in his throat, making it obvious that he was getting nervous.

"I can't do that…" Kal reminded her.

"Tali has… I bet she has her suit off right now… along with Shepard's." Jack said, sporting a sinister smile. Kal stared at her. "I bet you also didn't know that she is pregnant did you?" Jack asked.

Kal almost coughed up his own heart when he felt it jump from that news.

"What!" Kal asked, losing his composure. Jack rose.

"Ya… I guess ol' Shepard and Mrs. Tali'Zorah got a little busy… busy with Mordin it would seem and found a way to curve around the whole separate protein science-stuff that Mordin's always on about. Yep, Tali is an expectant mother." Jack said pacing in front of Kal who almost didn't think that he should believe her.

"But wouldn't that make the child…?"

"A mutant, hybrid quarian-human baby… I think we both can put two and two together, Kal…" Jack said matter-of-factly.

"Has she old the Fleet yet?" Kal asked.

"I think she wants to keep it secret for now… I think she is also afraid of their reaction, especially if it is worse than your opinion." Jack teased, laughing lightly at the end.

"Let her live her own life. She deserves it more than anyone to have someone like Shepard; they are perfect for each other." Kal said, quickly dismissing Jack's words.

An asari justicar was next to walk into the room. She looked at both Jack and Kal, but he walked straight over to Kal.

"I would like to talk to you in the observation deck…" Samara said, throwing a glance over at Jack who stared at Samara thoughtfully.

Samara left the room and made her way over to the elevator and left. Jack stared at the door that Samara had left for sometime before she turned back to Kal'Reegar who wasn't sitting there anymore. She looked around the room and found no one in the room. She growled as she clenched her fists and left the room.


	62. Chapter 62: Love, Acceptance, and Hope

Shepard turned to the side where Tali had flopped down. She threw a smile that would melt most men in Shepard's position's heart, but Shepard threw his own disarming smile at her diffuse the situation. He watched as Tali's chest rose and fell from her heavy breathing and the sweat causing her body to shimmer slightly in the dimly lit room. Shepard felt Tali's leg ease its way along his leg causing him to bring his hand over to her head. He ran his fingers through her soft and airy hair that was only partially moist from the perspiration of their recent "activity".

Shepard took a few deep breaths in as the worries and troubles of the recent days melted just as his heart melted when he stood at the alter holding Tali's hand in marriage. His eyes drooped with the love and heaviness of the moment. He followed Tali's curves, and found the contrast of the straight and cold room with Tali's slightly illuminated, shimmering and warm body made Tali all that more beautiful. He breathed deeply again.

Tali stared into Shepard's stunning eyes that were only slightly illuminated from the dim room, but that made the shimmer all that much more romantic. She could always lose herself in those eyes as they felt like a sanctuary from the outside world. She smiled widely again as Shepard slowly rubbed the side of her neck with the hand that he had been using to caress her hair.

"Tali…" Shepard whispered softly.

"What?" Tali answered with the same softness though she was holding back the laughter.

"Has anyone told you that you are beautiful?" Shepard smiled as he saw Tali smile even wider.

Tali turned from him and put her hands in her eyes laughing quietly. She rubbed her hands down her face which she shook back and forth as she tried to dismiss what Shepard had said.

"What?" Shepard asked jokingly.

"Isn't that the reason you married me?" Shepard smiled at her response, grabbing her hand softly and pulling it away from her face. Tali looked over at him, her face burning off the embarrassment of the moment.

"How could I have done that when you've been hiding in that suit?" Shepard smiled widely as he saw Tali throw her head back like he was messing with her.

"Like I didn't notice how you looked at me…" Tali mocked, bring her head back down to look at Shepard.

"When?" Shepard laughed and Tali joined in his merriment.

"You know when…" Tali tried to gain an air of seriousness, but failed when she realized that they both were still naked in bed. Shepard gave her an exaggerated glare. "Every time that I had to bend over to reach the couplings under the Mako? You were looking at my butt!" Tali painted another serious look on her face, but it had so many flaws that Shepard laughed.

"I was looking at you!" Tali shook her head happily.

"I'm not complaining… I always looked at yours when you left engineering." Shepard wrapped his arms behind his wife's head and looked her deeply in the eyes.

"So was my butt attractive?" Shepard asked, breaking the moment into another laugh.

"Very!" Tali squealed.

Shepard put his fingers into Tali's side and tickled her. Tali laughed as his hands quickly tickled every section of her sides while she squirmed, helplessly trying to stop him. She squealed when he hit a tender spot, but Tali enjoyed being tickled since no quarian had been tickled for over three hundred years. Shepard stopped as he squeezed is ravishing wife against him tightly and kissed the side of her head. Tali was still laughing, but her hand had made its way between her body and his and held onto his shoulder.

"How did we get this far Shepard?" Tali asked, slowly caressing his back with her hand, feeling the cold sweat.

Shepard leaned back slightly to look her in the eyes; his eyes flirted with hers before he pressed his head back into hers with his mouth by her ear.

"Fate and destiny it would seem…" Shepard whispered.

"But… I mean… this all just feels like a story…"

"What kind of story?"

"One that you don't know how it is going to end… One that you think you know what is going to happen and then the author changes it… One that makes it appear that good things will always happen to the good people, but in the end they all die…" Tali fell deeply into a hole of contemplation while Shepard slowly stroked her hair.

"I hope the author of our story ends it well…" Shepard joked to her.

"We are the authors Shepard…" Tali corrected.

"Then lets write a good ending!" Shepard proposed.

Tali laughed as she pressed her hands against his chest and felt his chest slowly rise and fall from breathing. She slowly brought her hand up to the upper part of his chest and felt his strong heartbeat, a heartbeat that would never die if Tali wrote their story.

"Where do you see yourself in this story? Shepard asked.

"What?" Tali turned her head back to Shepard, confused.

"How far into the story do you see yourself now before we get our happily ever after?" Shepard teased with the simile that she had started.

"I feel like we are more than halfway finished Shepard…" Shepard tilted his head back in thought.

"Around… say… chapter 60 of a one hundred chapter book?" Tali laughed.

"Stop using the book comparison!" Tali yelled humorously, thrusting her small hands into Shepard's chest.

"You brought it up!" Shepard laughed grabbing Tali's wrists and burying another kiss onto her lips.

"You cheater…" Tali said softly. "Using kisses to get me to calm down… bosh'tet…" Tali trailed off, eyes closed, mouth still hanging slightly open from Shepard's soft and gentle kiss. Tali rubbed her leg on Shepard's again as a way to fight back against him. It didn't work

* * *

Garrus and Miranda sat in the mess hall of the Normandy. Miranda looked over playfully through her black hair that had fell in front of her eyes over at Garrus. Garrus looked over at her and opened his mouth slightly to say something when he heard the elevator door open and Kal walk out and walk over to Samara's room. Garrus stared at the corner for some time before he turned his attention back at Miranda when he jumped; she was sitting right in front of him almost touching his face.

"Aww… Did I scare you?" Miranda teased.

"I don't like playing games like that Miranda…" Garrus hoisted himself back onto his chair and brushed the dust from his armor.

Miranda looked at him with playful eyes.

"Why not?"

"They are juvenile…" Garrus couldn't look at her when he was annoyed.

"I never got to play these games…" Garrus looked over at her thoughtfully though she was still bugging him.

"Why did you accept me so quickly?" Garrus asked.

"What are you talking about?" Miranda asked, unbalanced by the straight forward question.

"One minute you are avoiding me and I decide to knock on your door one day and you pull me in your room… It just doesn't feel quite right." Garrus said coldly.

"What are you saying Garrus?" Miranda asked, worried.

"I wanted this relationship to work, and it has worked perfectly which seems almost too perfect… A little suspicious if you know what I mean…" Garrus turned from her and rubbed the side of his head while Miranda stared at him.

"I don't see anything suspicious with-" Miranda started.

"You don't see anything suspicious with you staring at Shepard longingly to falling into my arms and being crazy about me?" Garrus said coldly.

"I-I was just…" Miranda looked away for once in her life.

"Lying…" Garrus finished.

"No! I mean I was lying, but only in the beginning. I was lying to myself…" Miranda felt flustered for once in her life. "But now…. Now I really do love you Garrus… I just never thought that anyone would be so human to me… like Shepard did for me…" Miranda trailed.

Garrus sighed. "I've been so stupid…" Garrus rose and walked out of the room and into the elevator.

Miranda stared at the corner that Garrus had disappeared behind and felt her mistake begin to rip her apart. She struggled to gain control of her mental barriers, but they quickly fell as the flood of emotional distress crashed through her defenses. She looked over at a shiny metal pan and saw a distorted image of herself, bending and twisting to the curves of the pan. She looked into her own eyes and found the depression that was falling through. The flood hit her eyes and she felt its warm flow cascade over her eyelids and flow down her face gently.

Miranda quickly rose and ran over to the elevator and quickly called it back to her level. She knew what her heart was telling her this time, and this time she wasn't going to screw it up by being 'the cheerleader' that everyone called her. She was sick of being called that, and she was sick of living that lie.

* * *

Kal walked into Samara's room and looked around at the marvelous view that the observation deck provided. He whistled his amazement that he had never seen such an open observation deck that actually had clear panels of glass. Samara's biotics reabsorbed into her body as she stood up and greeted Kal.

"Good evening Ma'am." Kal said formally.

"Good Evening Kal…"

"What did you need to talk with me about?"

"I need to talk to you about your… infatuation with Tali'Zorah" Kal almost fell backwards from that unexpected, hard hitting blow, but instead he simply froze up and stared at her.

"You have me wrong…"

"I heard you talking to Shala at the bonding ritual… I know it was you talking." Samara seemed the least bit interested in how Kal was reacting to all of this.

Kal looked around the room before he shifted his weight on his legs and began:

"I did ma'am, but I'm over it and I accept who she has picked… Shepard is a fair and caring man… as long as no harm comes to Ms…. Er… Mrs. Tali'Zorah then I will be support their relationship until it becomes bitter…"

"Do you think it will ever get bitter?"

"No ma'am…" Kal sank his head and Samara watched him, but paid no attention to the meaning.

"Have you thought about trying to find someone else to be… in love with?" Samara seemed to struggle with the concept of the word 'love'.

"It's still too early for me to move on, but I plan on it; I mean so we will have our homeworld back and we will be free from these… these… prisons…" Kal said, looking down at his suit.

"That's all I wanted to know…" Samara turned and sat back down in her meditative stance. Kal stared at her, confused.

"That was incredibly strange, if you don't mind me saying…"

"I was helping you free the burden of the depression that you are harboring. Consider it a gift from me to you."

"So what? Do you like me or something?" Kal asked, at a lost.

"I care for your well being… I do not 'love' anyone…" Samara smiled though it felt hollow like her words.

Kal shrugged and left the room. He did feel like a great weight had been lifted off of his shoulder's but it still didn't feel quite right. He walked into the elevator, but before it closed he saw Garrus's hand stop the doors from closing. He walked in the elevator and punched the engineering deck button sending the elevator down instead of up. Kal stared at Garrus in the corner of his eye, but he could see nothing wrong him. The doors slowly moved open and Garrus stormed out. Kal poked his head of the elevator and watched Garrus walk to the Cargo Bay doors and enter them.

Kal slowly brought himself back into the elevator and was about the press the button to get back to the CIC, but the elevator doors closed again and he ascended again. The elevator stopped at the crew quarters again and a very distressed Miranda stepped onto the elevator and pressed the engineering button. Kal sighed bringing Miranda's attention.

"Sorry… I didn't see you were on…" Miranda said, wiping the tears from her eyes and trying to regain her composure.

"No ma'am… I understand…" The doors closed again and Kal was taken back to the engineering deck. Kal watched as Miranda walked out of the elevator and looked around before she walked in a random direction. Kal walked off the elevator also and walked into the engine room. He decided to visit them for sometime when he remembered about Jack being up there.

* * *

Krog sat on the edge of Liara's bed and watched her chest rise and fall as she took in the small restful breaths of relaxation. He felt a smile spread across his face as he found the image quite beautiful. Krog reached over and took Liara's hand and squeezed it gently waking her up. She looked over at him with tired eyes, but she smiled widely as she raised her hands above her head to stretch.

"Krog…"

"Always and forever…" Krog smiled widely at her. "How are you feeling?"

"I feel great!" Liara said defiantly, but when she flinched from the pain, Krog laughed. "It's not funny…"

"I'm sorry…" Krog said, feeling feelings that he had felt for quite some time.

Liara smiled happily at him before she looked down at Krog's hand holding her hand. She felt her cheeks burn, but she had always felt that heat when he touched her. He remembered how she had withstood the scorching heat when Shepard came by, but now that she wasn't trying to make a scene and her cheeks were still burning, she felt that there was something between them. Liara unconsciously moved forwards as she spoke to the ravaged krogan.

"It's okay Krog… I just I get… a little…" Liara didn't finish her sentence as her lips slowly touched the krogan.

Krog stared at her kissing him and felt the long buried feelings in him jerk back to life, but he didn't want to fully admit that they existed, but he couldn't be mean to Liara. He raised his hand up to her head and slowly rubbed her cheek as she kissed him. She slowly broke free from the kiss, eyes closed and steady breathing. She slowly opened her eyes to see that Krog's eyes were following her exactly.

"Krog…" Liara whispered. Liara sat up in her bed and looked at him. "Do you love me?"

Krog felt his body resist answering the question, but his unmatched bravery took over and he felt the words rip from his body.

"I love you more than the galaxy itself!" Krog laughed.

Liara wrapped her arms around, as far as her hands could wrap around, Krog's body and she hugged him before she looked into his eyes. "I don't know if we should do this…" Liara admitted.

"I want to experience this…" Krog said with feelings that seemed impossible for such a gruff character like himself.

Liara bent her head down and when she lifted it, her eyes were pitch black.

"Embrace eternity!"


	63. Chapter 63: Resort

Shepard stepped off of the elevator and turned to give Tali a small nod before the door closed; she waved with her fingers and giggled as the doors closed. He walked up the small metal walkway to see the glimmering image of the galaxy and zoomed in on Earth. The promise that he had made began to haunt him as he remembered that floating ball of blue, green, and, the newest hue, a dull gray. Shepard quickly flipped the image away as he scanned over his duties that the Alliance had sent him.

He read the first line of the first entry at least twenty times before he wiped his head and looked back at the galaxy map; he couldn't change his mind on her. He put the pad down and set the coordinates to Earth.

"Aye Captain… Setting coordinates in for Earth ETA six hours… Nothing like seeing your home again, right commander?" Shepard turned away from the word 'home', a word that implied love and belonging, a word that brought back happy memories, a word that did not apply to him.

"Ya, Joker… Home…" Shepard turned from the map and walked over to the armory doors that quickly opened revealing Jacob and Kal'Reegar tinkering with the guns. "What are you two up to?" Shepard asked.

"Sir." Kal turned and saluted, making his figure stiff and straight.

"At ease… Be comfortable Kal… I won't court martial you for keeping your mind relaxed." Kal slowly eased out of his salute, staring at the commander thoughtfully.

"Much appreciated sir."

"We were just experimenting with the mass accelerators in the guns to see if we could boost their power and efficiency so that we could get a few more rounds out of each thermal clip." Jacob explained.

"I would think experimenting would be Mordin's job?" Shepard asked though he knew why they were doing it.

Jacob chuckled. "Well Commander. We thought Mordin had too much fun over in the R and D department so we thought we could have a little fun ourselves."

Shepard smiled as he patted both Jacob and Kal'Reegar on the back as he left the room to walk over to Mordin's lab. "Keep up the good work."

Shepard walked into an empty lab with Mordin no where to be found. The beakers were still set out and the Bunsen burner was running, but Mordin appeared to have vanished without a trace. He was about to leave when Mordin's voice echoed in the room.

"Commander! Good to see you. Wish you could say same to me. But. Minor miscalculation. Nothing severe. Needs tweaking before actually field use." Shepard looked around the room, but Mordin still was not there.

"Mordin?" Shepard asked as his investigation resulted in nothing.

"Behind the desk. Invisibility cloaking generator found on Geth Hunter. In good shape. Amplified output to maximum. Result was success but, duration and ability to disengage… Impossible."

"Do you need any help?" Shepard asked, staring at where he thought Mordin was standing.

"No help. Just need to generate a small EMP charge. Don't worry. Taking precautions." Mordin reassured.

"I'll be going." Shepard turned and walked out the doors back to the CIC just as Mordin knocked over a glass container sending it shattering to the floor. He could hear him mumble off a few sentences before the door closed. He traversed the bride until her arrived at the helm where Joker was setting in the FTL drive settings and listening to his favorite band. Shepard rested his hand on the comfortable leather chair causing Joker to turn and look at him, but Shepard's look made him smile and nod.

The Normandy docked with the space station that guarded the earth's defensive line. The crew was given full leave and a bonus in credits to spend at either the station or the surface below. Shepard, Tali, and Garrus took a ship down a mountain range called the Himalayas. The shuttle kicked up the snow around it as it landed and sent a few more as the doors hissed open. Tali looked out at the snow and remembered Noveria for only a second, but she quickly forced the thought out of her mind as she stepped out into the soft powder. Garrus walked out onto the snow and shivered.

"Why does it have to be so cold?" Garrus asked.

"It's the Himalayan Ski Resort Garrus! It's supposed to be cold!" Shepard yelled excitedly, though he knew that this fun could only last so long before Tali would bring up the harder places to travel to.

"I always wanted to ski Shepard!" Tali squealed with excitement.

"You did? Hopefully those legs will give you an edge." Shepard teased.

"What does that mean Shepard?" Tali asked, feigning anger.

"It means you have skiing legs." Shepard added before he wrapped a war arm around her shoulder and pulled her close. They both laughed. Garrus shivered.

"I'll hang out at the lodge if you two love birds don't mind. I have some things to think about." Shepard and Tali stopped and looked at Garrus.

"If you bought some warmer clothes then you could come join us."

"I'm fine Shepard. You two go have fun."

Shepard and Tali watched as Garrus walked away to the lodge before they turned heir attention to the rental hut to get their skis. Shepard held Tali in his arm the entire walk over, but when they arrived at the door they found a large sign that read: "No Quarians Allowed To Rent OR Ski!" Shepard shook his head at the sign and looked around for an official to complain to. Tali lowered her head at the way her people were still treated.

"Hey you! Can I talk to you about this sign?" Shepard yelled to an official that just emerged from the side of the building. The man had rosy red cheeks and a smile that was as white as the snow, but the thick moustache on his face covered most of it up. The smile stuck to his face as he approached, but when he saw Tali standing beside the human that had called for him, his face turned sour.

"Yes sir? Is this quarian bothering you?" the man asked gruffly.

Shepard felt Tali's hand slide down to his hand. He grabbed her hand and laced his fingers with hers before he spoke.

"I was wondering why you don't serve quarians here?" Shepard asked.

The man noticed how Shepard held the quarian's hand and grunted to himself. "Too many of our skis have been stolen that's why!" the man yelled staring right at Tali when he said it.

"And you think it's the quarians?" Shepard asked.

"I don't think… I **know**!" The man said.

"How do you know?" Shepard asked.

"Because they are gone without a trace! Only a quarian could make that clean of a swipe…" the man yelled.

"When was the last time you've seen a quarian?"

"I… I…" the man sputtered off.

"Quarians don't come to Earth because of this reason! That is why you have seen none! Now get me two pairs of skis before I make this a public scene…" Shepard coldly, a cold that made the air feel even colder; Tali shivered.

"What gives you the right?" the man leered.

"I am Commander Shepard and this is my wife…" he said slowly.

The man looked at him in disbelief for a second, but the images on the news programs slowly fell into place and his jaw slowly fell. He bowed down quickly and shook Shepard's hand. Shepard looked over at Tali and gave her an unsure shrug.

"I want to thank you for all that you've done for the human race. First human Spectre. Wow! He looked over at Tali and frowned a little. Right this way ma'am… we need to get you fitted for your skis…" the man said gruffly.

Tali looked at Shepard unsurely as she followed the racist man into the rental hut to get fitted. Shepard looked around to see if anyone was watching, but no one, happily, took notice. A few minutes later, Tali barely walked out in a pair of strange ski boots. She made it halfway over to a bench before she slipped on the ice. Shepard ran to her side trying to hold back the laughter.

"Tali are you alright?" Shepard asked.

"Bosh'tet…"

Shepard laughed as he grabbed Tali's hands and helped her up and over to the bench.

"I'm going to go get mine." Shepard said walking into the hut.

He emerged sometime later with the strange boots and two sets of skis.

"You forgot your skis Tali…" Shepard said.

"Thank you Shepard" Tali grabbed the long sticks off of Shepard's shoulder and placed them on the ground. "are we supposed to put them on?" Tali asked.

"Not until you get to a lift… then you can" Shepard assured her, wrapping his arm around her shoulder again. "You nervous?"

"A little…"

"It's natural…"

"It better be."

* * *

Krog woke up on Liara's bed with her sleeping on his chest. He looked down at her gentle body as it rose and fell from his powerful breathing, and he felt relaxed for once in his life. He wondered if this was how Shepard and Tali felt like when they were in love. He sighed as he started to regret his hunting of Tali and Shepard, but he still felt like he owed them a fight. He slid his fingers across Liara's face and she stirred slightly, but she did not awake.

Krog looked around the room again before he tried to slide his body out from under Liara's, but the chances of not waking her then would be impossible. He slowly moved and Liara's head fell onto the bed causing her to wake up and look over at Krog. She smiled at him as she pulled the covers up higher to hide her exposed side breast and bare back.

"That was amazing Krog…" Liara said, stretching her arms out, but keeping the blanket around her body.

"I can say the same for you Liara… That was simply… an experience…" Krog admitted.

"Simply?" Liara asked, throwing another smile.

Krog walked over to her and pressed his head against hers. Liara reached up and ran her fingers across the man scars on his face, and kissed him lightly on the lips. Krog felt a belonging with her as his heart raced and slowly softened with each moment he spent with her.

"It was extraordinary…"

Liara whispered with her lips barely a centimeter from Krog's lips. "You are extraordinary." She slowly bit on his bottom lip and Krog began to melt back into her love, but he tried to fight back.

"I have to go…" Krog told her.

Liara wrapped her arms around Krog's head and held on tight as Krog lifted her up. The blankets fell away from her body as he rose revealing her bare back again. Krog stopped rising and sighed as he put his arms on Liara's side and tried to gently pull her from his head.

"I have to go Liara…"

"You're not healed completely yet…" Liara protested as her grip tightened.

"I'm fine…"

"Wait until you are perfect before you go out on your death wish."

"I-"

"Shepard will be alive when you are done… You know him."

"Fine… Fine! I'll stay…" Krog said, feeling defeated for the first time in his life.

He lowered her back into her bed and brought the covers up to cover her bare body again.

"I'll stay and get better if you will get better also…" Krog promised.

"You got yourself a deal…" Liara smiled.

Krog walked over to the bed that he had moved into the room with hers and slid it over to the side of her bed before he sat on the edge of it. Liara began to move over to him, careful to keep the covers around her body. She let the covers drop just enough to press her body against his back and hug him warmly. Krog could feel her breasts on his back and grunted at the way she teased him, but when she started massaging his soar shoulders he forgot to get angry.

"I don't think I have ever lost…"

"I don't think you lost…"

"I'm succumbing to a woman…" Krog felt the annoyance begin to rise in him.

"And I'm succumbing to a man…" Liara whispered, nestling her head into Krog's neck and gracing it with gentle kisses again.

Krog protested at first, but he wasn't going to lie that he was enjoying himself. He felt a happy smile spread across his face and feelings fill his mind again that he had not felt for ages. He looked into Liara's eyes and felt himself drift away to the days of his youth, back at the mining camp. He could see one of the asari foremen who always looked at him while he worked. He could feel her eyes touch his body. He remembered the day that he saw her body laying in the pit of the dead; her eyes still staring at him. His one and only thing that had ever been close to love was dead before he had ever talked to her.

Krog felt himself feel bad, but when he felt another wet kiss touch his neck, the painful memories melted away, and he felt his love return to him.

"Liara…" Krog whispered, showing the first sign of sincerity and kindness that he had never felt in centuries.

"Krog!" Liara wrapper her arms tightly around him and her body tighter. They both laughed as Krog fell back on the bed and held Liara by her soft sides. Shepard vanished from his mind. Tali vanished from his mind. Revenge vanished from his mind. "thank you for giving me this…"

"What did I give you?"

Liara smiled. "A kid…"

Krog's heart fluttered a few times as his mind became hazy. "What!"

"We embraced eternity… We became one… Your experiences have become a part of the child that will be born…" Liara smiled.

"A kid? My own kid?" Krog couldn't fathom the reality of the situation.

Liara looked at him and gave him a small smile as she nodded. Krog felt her wrap her arms around him again, but he did not feel her touch; he could only feel the confusion and the stark reality that he, Krog, the one man army, the unstoppable, was going to be a father, but then again he knew this was going to happen. He remembered how he had so openly let her proceed, how he openly he accepted her touch, and how openly he let his feelings for her fall out. He had wanted this.

Krog smiled to himself as he wrapped his arms around Liara and held her tightly laughing.

"A child of my own!" Krog laughed again. "I'm going to be a father!" Krog's eyes glazed out as he looked of into his own future. He saw himself and Liara holding their kid, but he saw no confrontation with Shepard. He hated himself for as much as he did not care. Krog looked at his still mending legs and his life began to feel vulnerable and soft. He remembered how he had almost took this feeling, this experience from Shepard. He hated himself for being so selfish, and he felt he owed Shepard an apology, but what could possible pay for attempts on his life.

Krog sighed as he felt his long and hard life fall from him, and a new life begin to grow up where the old had died. He still felt the strong undying soul in him resist the change, and he knew that his soul would never quit, but how he approached things began to falter. His only sense and feeling became Liara's body on his with her head nestled deep on his neck.

"Curse you Shepard…" Krog whispered under his breath before he smiled and focused his attention on Liara.


	64. Chapter 64: Remedy

Shepard and Tali sat on the ski lift. Tali looked around and wrapped her arm into Shepard's when the lift started to raise higher off of the ground. Shepard smiled and put his head on her head as it rose higher up into the white slopes of the Himalayan ski slopes.

"Shouldn't there be a bar or something to stop people from falling off?" Tali asked as the ski lift rose dangerously high above the ground.

"They can't have a bar because you need to jump off at the end."

"Jump off?" Tali looked over at Shepard in disbelief.

"When we get to the top Tali, we need to jump off." Shepard explained.

"Doesn't it stop?"

"Did it stop when we got on?"

Tali remembered how Shepard pulled her out in front of the moving bench that sent her falling back into. She realized that the lift never stops and that she was going to have to jump off at the top of the hill, but she still wanted Shepard to somehow stop the lift.

"No…" Tali gave up and focused more on prepping herself for the jump off than on trying to find a way of stopping it. The turn slowly approached with the crest of the hill. Tali looked over at Shepard who merely grinned and looked at the spot where he intended to jump.

Tali looked at the same spot and focused as the lift closed in to their destination. She felt Shepard's weight change and finally a pull on her arm as she was slid herself off of the lift and onto the soft snow below. She landed less than gracefully, but she survived the leap of faith. Shepard made his way over to the side of the hill and slipped on his skis while Tali watched him. She walked over to him so that he could teach her how to attach her skis. She edged her way over to the hill just in time to see a professional skier flying down the hill at incredible speeds.

Tali stared awestruck at the length and height of the hill she was on and turned to Shepard, but he was fiddling with one of his straps. She wanted to say something, but she stopped herself and accepted that she was going to enjoy herself and at least try this skiing business that Shepard was talking about the entire shuttle ride over.

Shepard slipped his skis on and looked over to Tali to see that neither of her skis were attached. He slid himself over to her and grabbed one of her skis and patted the snow beside him. Tali reluctantly sat down beside him and watched as he lifted her leg up with her hands and snapped the ski onto her boot. As he put her foot back, he slowly slid his hands up her leg and along her thigh which caused Tali to giggle and loosen up. He did the same for the other ski.

By the time that Shepard had helped her up and she was standing on her slippery skis, she had forgotten about the dangerously tall hill and the speeds of the skier. She slowly skidded forwards as Shepard pulled on her arms. She felt much safer with his tightly around hers, but when she saw the ground disappear in front of her, she began to worry again.

"Shepard! I don't think I-"

"The first time is always the hardest."

"Shepard! I-I…"

"Don't worry… I'll be right here with you the entire way."

Tali felt the incline of the hill as she was pulled over the edge. Her legs wanted give out from under and cause her to fall, but the way Shepard stared at her caused her to keep standing. She began to pick up speed, but Shepard kept her slow by holding her back. Tali's heart raced as she could feel her suit and body resist the wind that was blasting up the side of the hill. She felt alive and free again, but this time with her suit on. She looked over to Shepard and laughed, but it quickly became serious when he let go of her hands.

All sense and security left her body and her legs began to wobble. She tried to use her sticks that she was given, but they felt so foreign to her. She felt her body falling backwards when she felt someone grab her. She looked up to see Shepard standing over her looking down the hill, holding her up. At that moment all of her worries about skiing ended. Shepard straightened her up and Tali felt her legs stiffen up and hold its own against the rush of the snow underneath the skis. She gained speed, but she broke the speed by sliding from side to side.

Shepard started laughing as Tali started getting used to skiing and she managed to make it halfway down the hill before her legs gave way and she fell over again. He stopped by her and had to laugh at seeing her visor covered in snow and her bright eyes narrow.

"Enjoying yourself?"

Tali looked at him and grabbed his shoulder to pull herself up, but this only caused Shepard's skis to slide out from under him and he fell down with Tali landing on him. They both laughed hard as they both now struggled to stand up on the side of the hill. Shepard always managed to stand while Tali always managed to cause him to fall down again. Out of a shear stroke of luck, Tali and Shepard managed to stand up and look down the remaining hill.

"I bet I can beat you down!" Tali said playfully turning sharply and going down the hill.

Shepard quickly tried to turn, but found that Tali had shoved his ski into a hole. He shook his head and smiled as he quickly pulled the ski out of the hole and turned down the hill that Tali was shakily going down. Shepard laughed and shook his head as he bent forwards and streamlined his body to catch up to Tali who was already halfway down the hill. The wind bit at his cheeks as the snow felt like pin shots in his face, but seeing Tali skiing made him laugh and forget the pain.

Tali felt her legs wanting to give out and slide from out from under her, but when she heard the distant laughter of Shepard gaining in intensity she strengthened them back up and managed to look over her shoulder to see Shepard bent over making him gain on her.

"If he can do it then I can…" Tali laughed to herself.

She bent over and felt the skis pick up speed as she neared a fourth till the end of the hill. She started to laugh believing she was going to win when another laughter filled the air beside her and she looked over to see Shepard matching speed with her.

"Shepard!" Tali laughed.

Shepard reached over and weaved his arm into hers and they matched their speed the rest of the ride down. Both Tali and Shepard laughed at the ridiculousness of their whole competition. Tali quickly unclipped the skis from her boots and turned around just in time for Shepard, who had already snapped his skis off, to wrap his arms around her and spin her around her legs out as they spun. Tali giggled at their little snow ballet and held on tighter. Shepard quickly lost balance from becoming dizzy and he fell soft to the ground with Tali landing on his chest. They both laughed at Shepard's folly, but the laughing slowly diminished as Tali stared longer into Shepard's eyes.

"You learn quick…" Shepard said, softly rubbing his hands along Tali's back.

Tali slid her one hand on Shepard's chest, brushing a few chunks of snow off. "I'm a quarian Shepard… We have to learn fast to survive…"

Shepard closed his eyes and nodded. "I'm sorry I forgot that you were quarian… silly me." Shepard teased.

Tali and Shepard laughed again, but this time Tali unclipped her visor and silenced the laughing. She let the frigid cold of the surrounding air to cool her face as she placed her soft, warm lips on Shepard's lower lip. She bit at it softly causing Shepard to chuckle. They broke apart and stared at each other again, lost forever in their own perfect compatibility. Tali couldn't believe that such a loving man could exist in the body of a veteran commander that had watched his whole platoon die on Akuze.

She had just enough sense to look around to see the shocked faces of the surrounding skiers that were looking right at Tali's exposed face. She cleared her throat as she clipped the visor back on and looked down at the ground, embarrassed. She slid off of Shepard's chest and stood up, helping Shepard up.

"You shouldn't be ashamed at how you look Tali." Shepard said, placing a loving arm around her shoulder.

"I know… it's just been so long… that I…. I have never been out of this… this holding cell… this jail…" Tali said softly, staring at her gloved hands. Her attention broke when Shepard reached over and grabbed her hands.

"It's time that you show the galaxy the beauty of the quarian people…" Shepard smiled at her.

Tali stared into his eyes but broke contact when she looked down at the ground though she was smiling at Shepard's compliment.

"Let's go down again and then I will think about it!" Tali said shaking Shepard's hands as she spoke.

She quickly gathered up her skis and took off for the lift. Shepard watched her run in the snow every aspect of her figure appeared built for the snow and it matched perfectly with everything she did. She turned around and waved her delicate hand for Shepard to follow her. Shepard shook his head to break his trance at the beauty in the snow. He gathered up his skis and ran to catch up with her.

"What were you looking at?" Tali asked when he had caught up.

"Just the most beautiful skier in the world…"

"I can't be the most beautiful person in everything Shepard…" Tali teased.

"You are right… You aren't the most beautiful commander… I am!" Shepard laughed. Tali punched him lightly on the arm and laughed to.

"You better not get to full of yourself Shepard. The lift can only hold five hundred pounds and if your head gets any bigger then you will be riding alone…" Tali giggled.

* * *

Garrus sat watching out the window of the lodge of Tali and Shepard making it to the bottom of the hill. He watched as Shepard grabbed Tali and spun her around in the snow before they both fell and laid on top of each other. Garrus sighed and turned back to his hot turian-throat-heater, comparable to the human hot chocolate, but much sweeter and made from three different exotic fruits. He looked down at his hands to see that they trembled though he knew he wasn't cold. From the corner of his eye, Garrus saw that someone sat down at his table, a woman.

He looked up to see Miranda who was looking at him, but when he looked up at her she broke and looked away. She sighed and held her mouth open slightly before she started to talk.

"Garrus… I…" She started.

"I don't want to hear it…" Garrus said, pushing himself up from the table.

Miranda quickly reached out and grabbed his arm and kept him at the table.

"Garrus… Please listen to me." Miranda pleaded.

Garrus stared at her and sighed before he slowly lowered himself back into his chair. "Why should I listen to you? After all you have done, why would I even trust you?"

"Garrus… I messed up. I know that, but me messing up made me see what I was missing. I grabbed onto the nearest Shepard-like character and thought that I could mold them into Shepard, but instead I found who I… I really loved…" Miranda said in a whisper.

Garrus stared at her and knew that what she was saying was the most sincere words that Miranda had ever spoken to him. He could basically hear her heart beating in her voice, but he was not going to let her get him back for free.

"You broke us up… You lied to me, and you think you can just come back and say a few sad words and get me back? Does that work for human relationships because it's not going to work for me!" Garrus angrily spat at her.

Miranda stumbled over the next few words, revealing her buried delicate nature. "G-Garrus… please… I'm sorry for what I did… I knew it was wrong, but I… I couldn't just tell you that the first half of our relationship, but the other half… that was real…" Miranda's eyes misted causing her to quickly look away to hide them.

"Why do you do that Miranda?" Garrus asked.

"What?" Miranda didn't look at him.

"You hide your true feeling from everyone."

"No body wants to see me crying…" Miranda managed a halfhearted laugh, but the lump in her throat quickly stopped it.

Miranda's heart skipped a few beats when she felt Garrus's hands touch hers. She looked up at him with tears still overflowing out of her eyes to see Garrus looking right at her. Her mind wanted to look away, but she felt herself refuse those familiar impulses. She stared into Garrus's eyes and felt more tears flood out of her eyes, but this time they were of happiness.

"Next time just tell me…" Garrus said.

Miranda tried to laugh again. "I will… Don't worry."

"Have you seen Shepard and Tali ski… Tali's pretty good at it." Garrus said, quickly changing the subject and breaking his gaze with her by looking out the window.

Miranda looked out to see Shepard and Tali sitting on the lift going back up the hill, Shepard was laughing hysterically at something that Tali had just said.

"Those two are just way too cute to be real…" Miranda said, wiping the tears from her eyes. She finally felt that the chains of her love for Shepard break and a new silk bond form with Garrus.

"Tali always had a thing for Shepard, even when they first met in that alleyway on the Citadel."

"But didn't Shepard hook up with Ashley?" Miranda asked.

Garrus took a deep breath in before he looked at Miranda. "I don't think he thought that he was going to die and never see her again. I think he was planning on breaking up with Ashley, but I can't be certain." Garrus said.

"I feel bad for her…"

"Don't. She was an excellent soldier, but her racism and prejudices became too much for Shepard. I think he was hoping she would change, but she only changed when he dies… Shows you what kind of woman she was… she is still pretty prejudiced, but happily she is looking at the universe in better light."

Miranda looked out the window again to see the faint outlines of Shepard and Tali's head on the lift. She wondered how this scene would have been different if it was Ashley sitting beside Shepard instead of Tali. She brushed off the impossible idea and turned back to Garrus.

"Thank you Garrus…"

"I believe that people can change…"

Miranda smiled happily. Free from her past life.


	65. Chapter 65: Dreams

*I wanted to give a special thanks to AnimusFerrus who gave me the idea of why Miranda latched onto Garrus so quickly. It was an excellent reason to make the suddenness of the relationship to make sense. Special thanks to him*

* * *

Shepard and Tali walked into the warm, cozy lodge where Garrus and Miranda had taken refuge. Shepard's cheeks burned red from the cold glistened with the few drops of melted snow that had stuck to his hair. He breathed out and quickly pulled off his snow covered gloves sending chunks of ice and snow around the first clearing. Tali walked in and shook the snow that had stuck to her enviro-suit, but found that some of the snow had caked to her robes. She grabbed at the small chunks and peeled them away revealing the damp robes. She sighed.

"My robes are all wet Shepard…" Tali complained looking down at her drenched apparel.

Shepard looked over at her damp robes and before he looked down at his own drenched clothes. He sighed at the sight as he whipped his gloves off into the drying rack and began yanking off his frozen boots. Once had had all of the outer, wet layers of his clothes and walked over to the front desk and grabbed the keys to their reserved room. Tali quickly pulled her boot off and almost fell over when she stepped on a piece of ice. She quickly composed herself and followed Shepard down the hall.

Shepard turned at the room on the far left and looked at the numbers on his key and at the numbers on the door before he swiped the card. With a happy little beep, the door graciously slid open revealing a spacious room with a nice cozy bed. Shepard stood in the doorway for a second to take in the sight of a pleasant room before he saw a computer sitting in the corner. Tali brushed past him and plopped on the bed, beat from skiing, something that her legs didn't quite like as Shepard had thought they would. She sighed, resting her hands on her slowly rising and falling stomach.

Shepard walked over to the corner computer and sat down. He punched in the few passwords and key codes before the main Citadel feed came into view. He didn't want to take long, nor dwell on the prospect of how long this would take since he was on vacation. He always remembered about the coming Reaper's but he desperately blocked it out so that he could enjoy the small amount of time that he had with Tali. He craned his head back to see her laying on the bed. Snoring.

Shepard chuckled lightly to himself as he punched in the final words of his letter to the council along with the data from his Omni-tool over the collector base. Hopefully they would listen to him this time and trust them to start setting up a galactic defensive against the inevitable Reaper invasion. He looked over the grammar-error free, perfect message and clicked the send button before he shut the screen off, dimming the room into a nice cozy orange glow.

Shepard walked over to the bed where Tali had stretched out and slept loudly. She sounded stuffed up, almost making Shepard laugh as he remembered her taking her mask off to give him a kiss after her first skiing escapade. He couldn't believe that she had managed to fall down that hill fifteen more times before calling it quits. He grabbed her hand and put it back on her stomach with her other hand. He put his hands down on her legs and lifted them up onto the bed and watched her sleep loudly.

Most snoring, in Shepard's opinion, would have been bothersome to him, but Tali's just sounded sweet and soothing to his ears, giving him the right amount of ambiance to get to sleep himself. He softly rested his head beside hers and slowly closed his eyes seeing that she wasn't waking up for anything. He felt himself drifting when he heard his name and opened his eyes up quickly to see Tali still sleeping, but saying his name. He reached over and held onto her hand and watched her tense muscles relax.

"Dreaming…" Shepard said to himself as he reached over Tali and flicked the soft glowing light off sending the room into a dim darkness.

Shepard closed his eyes and forgot about the Reapers and all his worries knowing that he would remember them tomorrow when he would feel better. He felt his body drift off and the imagination take hold.

* * *

_The sun glimmered brilliantly in the soft island air. Shepard woke up sitting on a beach chair looking around at the surrounding area. Sitting next to him was a robed quarian who had her face buried in the hood. Shepard knew it was Tali, but he found seeing her out of her suit slightly odd. He tapped on her leg causing her to stir._

"_Shepard…" Tali said softly._

_She slid her one leg up past the other as she stretched to look at Shepard. She flipped the hood back revealing her glowing beauty that was only extenuated by the glow of the sun. Shepard slowly became aware of the soft sighing of the large blue ocean in front of him. Breathing in and out as Tali had on the bed. He looked out at the blue skies that were speckled with the white fluff of the clouds that slowly wafted around. A small sea breeze rolled over the palm trees that hung overhead causing their leaves to rustle ever slightly. Everything was perfect._

_Shepard looked back to Tali's chair to see that she had left. He looked back out at the beach sands to see her walking towards the water. She lifted her hand up and beckoned as she had when they were at the ski resort, delicate and loving. Shepard rose from his beach chair and walked in the warm sand that soothed the sore muscles in his feet, soft and encapsulating. Tali smiled at him playfully and grabbed his hand when he finally made it to her._

_Shepard took a deep breath, taking in the odor of the sea breeze and feeling the soft mistings of the water that was thrown from a nearby rock face where the waves crashed against in more powerful breaths. He turned back to Tali who slowly eased farther up on Shepard's arm, bringing him closer and closer to her. She pressed her hips against him and held his arm over her shoulder, resting her head on his shoulder as she walked. Shepard looked around the corner of the beach where they were turning to see a large grass roof hut with a large patio garnered in tables and chairs, all with white umbrellas that reflected the sun's rays like they themselves were clouds._

_They walked up the wooden stairs and took a seat under one of the umbrellas where the shade provided a relaxing release from the heat of the tropical sun. Two drinks were brought over without their ordering, but both drank them just the same. Shepard looked at Tali who equally looked at him. Her look quickly became confused as she saw that Shepard was staring at her._

"_What is it?" Tali asked._

"_Hmm? Oh nothing… The sun makes you look nice…" Shepard admitted._

_A small sea breezed rolled in with the sigh of sea. The wind blew Tali's soft and light hair into her eyes which she slowly brushed away before smiling again at Shepard. Shepard was now the one to ask._

"_What are you looking at?"_

"_The best father in the world…"_

"_What do you mean best fa-" before he could finish a young girl, sharing both quarian and human physiologies ran out from the hut and up to Tali grabbing a hold of her hand._

"_Mom! Can I go play with the other kids?" the little girl asked._

"_You know what your father and I will tell you…" Tali looked over at Shepard and smiled. "Go have fun and enjoy yourself!"_

_The little girl squealed with delight as she ran over to another table that was filled with an assortment of kids, all of which through their hands up in the air and squealed their delight. They all took off into the sand and ran out to the soft rolling waves where they let the waves bite at their toes. Shepard smiled at the innocent sight before a small squeeze on his hand brought his attention back over to Tali, the bond fabric still wrapped around her hand, along with Shepard's still wrapped out his hand. Even the ring that Shepard had got her was on her finger._

"_She is a strong willed girl Shepard… I wonder where she got that from?"_

"_Had to be from her mother…" Shepard laughed._

_Tali laughed too as she looked over at the kids playing. She opened her mouth to say something, but decided against it before she turned back to Shepard. _

"_I think she takes after you the most."_

"_Do you really think so?"_

_Tali nodded her head as she squeezed Shepard's hand a few times. Tali sighed as she watched the children play in the sand. Shepard wanted to look, but instead he found himself looking at Tali who slowly became teary eyed. A single tear fell from her happy eyes as she looked out at the children, her daughter to be precise._

"_What's wrong Tali?" Shepard asked, looking back at the children to make sure nothing had happened._

"_I… I never thought this life would be possible between us Shepard…" More tears fell from Tali eyes as she started to laugh softly._

_Shepard moved over to the side of her and smiled as she buried her head in his chest._

"_Good things happen to good people Tali…"_

_Tali looked up at Shepard, eyes red from crying her tears of joy. Shepard rubbed his hand through her soft hair as she slowly closed the gap between their faces. Eight before their lips touched the world faded into darkness._

_

* * *

_

Shepard's eyes slowly opened to find Tali's arm draped over his chest, her robes were off and hanging on one of the racks that were in the room, leaving her with just her black enviro-suit. Shepard smiled at Tali as he tried to think forward to the day when he would be a father. He felt himself tear up a bit with the idea, but he did nt let one tear drop. He repositioned himself back on the bed, turning to the far corner of the room to see a red blinking light on the computer.

He looked back at Tali who was still softly snoring though her body was in a less than cute manner with her arms and legs sprawled everywhere. He softly rose out of bed and walked over to the computer, flipping the screen on. A single message was waiting in his inbox.

Commander Shepard,

We have looked over your request and the evidence that you have provided us and we cannot deny that we are being threatened, but we see that we cannot jump to any actions before we get a consensus with the rest of the council races. If what you are saying is true, then we need to have the cooperation of the entire galaxy including the Terminous system, an area where we have jurisdiction. If you can guarantee their participation in this defense then we will do everything in our power to help.

The Council

Shepard stared at the message in surprise. There was no way that this could be right. The Council was actually going along with his ideas without making a big deal about it. Shepard wanted to cheer and jump, but the soft snoring behind him stopped his celebration. He quickly wrote up a formal thank you to the Council and retired back to bed hoping for another dream that would melt his worries away. He fell asleep, but no dream followed.

* * *

Kal walked around the streets of Earth trying to find something to do. Everywhere he had went to had kicked him out or bad mouthed him for being a quarian. He was just about to quit when he noticed a woman walking out of one of the bars. He walked over to her, not knowing what he was doing, and decided to talk to her.

"Hello." Kal said strongly.

The woman turned, started from his voice. She quickly brushed the soft brown hair that hid her face and looked at Kal.

"Wow! Are you a quarian?" The woman asked, amazed.

"Yes… I am…" Kal said, almost unnerved from all the times that he had answered this question only to be thrown out onto the streets.

"I've never seen a quarian before! This is! This is! Wow!" The woman pulled out a camera a snapped a picture of him. "My friends are never going to believe me!"

"I came over here because I saw that you were having trouble with this gate." Kal tried to start small talk.

"I'm just closing shop for today… business has been slow…" The woman adjusted the bag on her shoulder.

"Do you need help with that?" Kal offered,

The woman looked at the bag and back at Kal.

"Yeah…" woman seemed to mistrust Kal for only a second before she handed the bag to him and smiled. "I live right down the street in an apartment…" the woman's eyes flickered around Kal's face. "Follow me…"

Kal carried the woman's bag as she led the way. The finally made it to a large complex with at least twenty windows on ever floor. Kal looked up at it and whistled.

"I live on the third to last floor and the elevator is broken. What luck, eh?" The woman asked.

"I could carry these up to your room if you like." Kal offered.

"That's okay… I'm fine." The woman stared at Kal for some time. "How long are you staying here?"

"I think they were planning on a week before they are heading out so… a weak at most."

The woman bit her lip and nodded a couple of times.

"Tell you what? Meet me here tomorrow at eight o'clock PM. Dress classy!"

"Wh-" Kal started to ask, but the door slammed shut on him before he could ask her why she wanted him to meet him there.

He stepped off of the threshold of the stairs and made it two step down the road when he felt an urge to look back at her apartment. He caught sight of her looking out the window at him. When she realized that he was watching her, she waved and quickly vanished from the window. Kal began to walk away again. He didn't know if he should trust this awkward woman or if he should run while he still could. He wondered why he had talked to her and why he offered to help her so much.

Kal shook his head and continued down the street with a smile on his face.

"Things are looking up Reegar…" he said to himself.


	66. Chapter 66: Understanding and Evolution

The next morning brightened the room with the glow of the white snow outside. Shepard woke up to find that Tali was not in bed. He looked around the room and found that her pack was open revealing the box of syringes. He sighed before he walked over to the bathroom to see her holding the empty syringe in contemplation. She quickly looked up to see Shepard standing in the doorway which caused her to slightly jump.

"Morning Shepard…" Tali said with zero enthusiasm, her attention falling back on the syringe.

"Morning Tali." Shepard looked down at the syringe and back at Tali. "Problems?"

"No… I was just thinking…" Tali said.

Shepard walked into the bathroom and sat beside her. Tali looked over at him and smiled under her visor. She rested her head on his shoulder and breathed out deeply.

"I just don't know Shepard…" Tali said.

"I don't either… but I'm glad that you are doing this… for us…" Shepard smiled at her causing her to smile wider and giggle slightly. She grabbed his hand.

"For us…" She shook his hand with each syllable.

"Let's get some breakfast." Shepard stood up and held out his hand for Tali to grab. She looked at his hand for a few seconds before she shrugged off her doubts and grabbed his hand and stood.

They made their way down the hall to the large dining room where they took their seats by the window so they could look at the mountains. A young human waiter came over and asked if Shepard wanted coffee. He looked over at Tali and struggled for to ask her if she wanted coffee because he didn't know if she could even drink coffee.

"Umm… would you like… umm… some coffee?"

"Yes please…" Tali said groggily.

Shepard stared at her and smiled.

"Are you sure you want to try?" Shepard asked cautiously.

"Yes… I want to see if these injections are doing anything other than improving my immune system." Tali smiled under her mask though she was nervous about what she was doing.

The waiter brought over the dark steaming cups of coffee over to Tali and Shepard. He also dropped off a couple packs of creamer and a small bowl of sugar. Tali fiddled with the outer edges of the cup, slowly spinning it and looking at her reflection in the dark liquid. She took a couple of breaths and looked at Shepard nervously. Shepard opened his Omni-tool with a manual for saving Dextro-protein organisms, like Tali, from the Lido-protein poisoning. She could also see the emergency lines were already dialed in and ready to be contacted.

The liquid looked amazing and rich, but Tali could still imagine the uncomfortable convulsions of her body if these injections have not done their job. The way the liquid would slowly rip apart her stomach and cause internal damages to her body if she didn't get immediate medical attention. She unclipped her visor. Shepard watched her hand shake as she placed it on the table and grabbing the cup. She took a deep breath of the steaming fumes of the coffee. Her red nose, probably caused from being sick the night before seemed to clear at the soothing scent, but Tali knew that that was temporary.

"You have to do this Tali…" Shepard said, sensing the impending and possible danger that could develop from doing this act.

"I have human DNA in me… I should be fine…" Tali said as she took a small sip of the coffee and putting the mug down.

Shepard quickly scanned her with the Omni-tool to see the reaction that her body was having to the foreign liquid. Her body accepted the liquid with only some resistance, but everything seemed to go well. Shepard looked up into Tali's eyes which still glowed with the fear of what she was doing. The dark glow of fear quickly faded away as a bright and happy look broke through as she watched Shepard smile.

She slid forwards and wrapped her slender arms around Shepard, pressing her face against his, crying softly with happiness.

"So how was your first cup of coffee?" Shepard asked.

Tali fell away from him and smiled. "Bitter." She laughed.

Shepard grabbed the cream and sugar and showed them to her. "Then you need to add some of this…"

Tali looked at the containers and the bowl of crystals. Shepard sat down on his side and opened a pack of creamer, pouring it in, and taking a spoonful of sugar, mixing it slowly. Tali copied him and found her dark coffee transform into a light brown drink. She took another drink of it and smiled. She found tasting things to be such a luxury when she had spent her entire life tasting the bland mixes of protein pastes. She felt her body warm and her soul revived with a renewed vigor and life, the life that had been denied to her.

She finished the cup of coffee and was about to order another when Shepard stopped her.

"Only one. Coffee is bad for pregnant women." Shepard smiled.

Tali blushed at his words. She needed to hear people say it at times so that she could even believe it. She felt tension in her chest as she did not know whether to laugh or cry or simply be happy. She stared at Shepard with her misty glowing eyes and smiled widely at him.

"What about expectant fathers?" Tali asked, trying to turn the tides.

Shepard choked on his coffee as he tried to laugh. This brought the attention of everyone in the small diner over to Shepard's table where their attention quickly diffused away from Shepard and quickly focused on Tali. Tali looked at people and was about to drop her head and hide, but she remembered Shepard's words. She smiled widely and looked at the people around her, making eye contact with every single person in the room. The room became completely silent with a few clinks of plates and silverware.

Tali turned to Shepard and laughed. Shepard turned to the people and stood up.

"Okay people! Go back to what you are doing. Nothing to gawk about over here." Shepard announced to the people.

A few of the people on the back started to talk again, but the people sitting at the closer tables whispered to themselves as threw glances over to Tali. One of the young skiers stood up from his table and walked over to Shepard and Tali's table. He cleared his throat to get Tali's attention.

"Umm… yeah… umm… I was wondering if you… umm… had any… umm, quarian friends that would… uh… like to… uh… start something… umm… with me that is… I mean…" The young skier nervously walked back to his table, red in the face.

Shepard looked at Tali and smiled.

"See… show them the beauty of the quarian people Tali. Show the galaxy the beauty that was hiding under those masks." Shepard laughed.

Tali's self esteem grew ten-fold as she looked around the room at the young men that stared at her, amazed. The waiter returned, but he appeared much more nervous now then he was when Tali had ordered the coffee.

"W-w-would you like anything t-to eat?" the asked, shaking.

"I'll have some Dextro-protein paste…" Tali ordered. Shepard looked at her and smiled. "I'm not going to press my luck with food Shepard, at least, not yet."

The waiter appeared relieved that she ordered something simple and predictable for an alien her position, but the sight of her face still made it hard. "And for you sir?"

"Scrambled eggs, bacon, toast, and a cup of orange juice." Shepard ordered.

"I will be right back with your food sir" he nodded at Shepard. "uh… Miss."

"Mrs." Tali corrected.

The waiter looked between Shepard and Tali. "Of course, sorry about that." The water quickly scurried off to the kitchen.

Tali felt strange being in this kind of social environment. She found that she was able to convey messages with her face now which opened a whole new world of communication to her. She felt the tingle of her noise warn her that her time was up so she sealed the visor back onto her helmet, coughing slightly.

"Take any antibiotics?" Shepard asked.

"No… I only need to take those for _extended_ times outside of my suit."

Shepard and Tali laughed as they looked out at the mountain range before them. A few minutes of silently observing the scenery made their food come faster. A small tube of paste was given to Tali while a steaming plate of food was given to Shepard. Tali stared at the food and felt her mouth get wet with desire, but she knew that she would not be able to eat it and live, not now. She accepted her paste and ate it quickly so she could watch Shepard.

Shepard put the bacon and the eggs into the two buttered pieces of toast and ate it like a sandwich. Tali stared at it in envy. The idea of cramming all of that flavor together in one piece of food just felt amazing in Tali's imagination. She felt herself sigh as she watched Shepard eat. She still wanted to ask the question that she had wanted to ask Shepard since she had arrived on Earth, but she knew how he was going to respond to the question, but she knew she had to try.

"Shepard?"

Shepard chewed the few pieces of food in his mouth and swallowed before he started.

"Yeah?"

"I want to go see something else… here on Earth I mean."

Shepard stared at her and knew what the question was going to be, but he hoped that it wouldn't.

"What do you want to see?" Tali could hear that he already knew what she was going to ask.

"I wanted to see…" She took a deep breath. "where you grew up…"

Shepard stared at her for some time, his face void of all emotions.

"I don't think you want to see it…"

"You've seen where I grew up Shepard. Now, I want to see where you grew up."

Shepard brushed the crumbs off of his mouth with the napkin and thought about his decision. He took a deep breath before he looked up at her, feigning a smile.

"Only on one condition."

"And what condition would that be?"

"That you do not get out of the taxi." Shepard said bluntly.

"Why?"

"I don't want anyone to hurt you."

"Why would they hurt me?"

"Because of what you are."

"Because I'm a quarian!" Tali asked angrily.

"Yeah…"

"Why would they care?"

"You've seen how biased and racist Earth is… Now imagine an area where no laws existed, and those people who do not want anyone other than humans in their area, have guns and a bad attitude. They will not hesitate to tear you down and kill you if they find you in a dark alley."

Tali stared at him, afraid and angry.

"How can people be like that?"

"They are afraid. They are afraid of being open to aliens, to different races. Their lives are classified by an unknown hatred that was taught to them by the generation before them. None of them really know why they hate anymore because the reason for the hatred has been lost in the generations."

"That's horrible…"

"It's everywhere too…" Shepard began to feel depressed, but he quickly changed the subject to make her happy.

"So! I'll go get the cab, and we can make our way off to my old house." Shepard stood and quickly left.

Tali smiled weakly, but she felt that she had made a mistake by asking this of him. She looked down at her hands that softly shook. She quickly began to rub them together as a way of massaging the nervousness out of them.

* * *

Kal walked through the streets of Earth with a renewed vigor. He rounded a corner and saw a large group of humans wearing only pants and a series of chains dangled from their necks. They glared at him as he approached. Kal kept his pace, but he tightened his muscles in case he would have to act. The large muscular man stepped out front, crossing his arms while the others made a wall. Kal looked up at the large leader of the pack, he was almost a head taller than him.

"Where ya think yur going, Dirt?"

"I am going to pick up my date…" Kal said calmly.

"Where ya gettin' a date? I don't see any other of your kind around here." the group laughed.

Kal looked past the man's side to see where the woman that he had not asked her name for's house. "She lives right there." Kal pointed.

"You better not be talkin' about Natalie dirt."

Kal half laughed. "Stop calling me dirt."

"What you gonna do about it?"

"I'll have to kick your ass…"

The man looked at him thoughtfully before he turned to his group. "All of us?"

"All of your asses if I must…"

The leader's face turned red and his hands slowly clenched into fists. He gave a deafening roar as he ran forwards with his arms up ready to lay heavy haymaker into Kal. Kal easily dodged the strong, but inaccurate attack and threw in a series of weaker, but accurate jabs into the side of the large man's head sending him off balance. The other four men quickly jumped into to 'even the odds' and began to throw punches and kicks at Kal.

Kal dodged a few and blocked the rest as he spun himself in a circle, using his gained spinning momentum to smash the large man out cold. The others flinched that their leader had been knocked out by a slender quarian, but they quickly attacked to restore his honor. One pulled out a knife which Kal quickly disarmed by grabbing the man's wrist and giving it a small bone breaking twist. The man screamed in pain and the knife fell with a dim clink as it hit the sidewalk.

Kal turned and punched another thug below the ribs sending the sir escaping out of his lungs. The man struggled for breaths, but Kal sent another fist into the man's throat sending him down. The last three looked at each other before they tried to coordinate an assault. Kal ran forwards and leaped on the center guy and wailed on his head sending him out cold. The other two quickly ran over and tried to take advantage of Kal being on the ground.

Kal kicked his strong legs out and broke the one man's knees who fell screaming to the ground. The last man began to shake as Kal stood up and cracked his knuckles. He pulled out a knife, but Kal already had it turned and pressing against the man's chest.

"Get away…" Kal whispered in the man's ear.

The quickly turned and took off down the street. Kal dropped the knife and turned back to the apartment to find Natalie standing on the sidewalk, gawking at his show of martial arts. She began to laugh as she ran over to him.

"That was amazing!… um… what was your name?"

"Kal'Reegar…"

"Kal! That was amazing!" She quickly wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly.

Kal stared blankly at the area behind her as he felt those pains disappear in his heart and a new warmth fill his body. He smiled under his suit and almost laughed when he repeated her name in his head, finding the irony almost too much.


	67. Chapter 67: Forgotten Being Remembered

The shuttle ride over to 'the slums' as Shepard referred to them as to Tali was quiet and uncomfortable. Shepard tried to crack a few smiles for Tali, but upon seeing the miles and miles of familiar cityscape stretching before him, unchanged and never fixed, the grief of those years returned to him. He constantly brushed his nose and wiped his mouth nervously as the taxi made its way down the one street that Shepard never wanted to see again in his lifetime, but he was glad that he had Tali with him.

Shepard tapped on the taxi driver's shoulder and told him to slow down. They crept through the gloomy streets with the dirty glares that appeared to flake off of the old faces and into the air setting a mood of darkness and a sense of being unwanted. Shepard stared out the window with a look of hatred and regret. Tali watched, also regretting making Shepard revisit his ill-home.

Shepard quickly diverted his eyes and breathed out heavily as he prepared to speak. He glanced out the window and few times and slowly pointed with his finger at a large decrepit building. Tali looked at it, sad at the condition.

"Here is… umm… home, I guess." Shepard said.

Tali stared at the shambled brick building that was boarded up. The brick must have shimmered with a red hue from the freshly laid bricks when it was new, but now it appeared dull and forgotten like the people who lived there. A few of the upper windows had not yet been boarded up from either being lost amongst the disarray of the foul neighborhood, or avoided for the same reason. They were clouded from the years of never being loved and having smoke blown on them from the chain smokers that needed the extra air to stay alive.

Shepard only glanced at it once; the rest of the time he had his head turned away from the building, trying to forget the years of sorrow that he spent in that god-forsaken dump. He looked up once to watch Tali stare at it, but he caught the reflection off of her visor and avoided all contact until she looked back at him.

"Shepard… I…" Tali tried to speak.

"I know… You didn't know how bad it was… but you know now…" Shepard said, lacing his hands together nervously.

Tali looked back outside to catch the building passing by the car. She was about to look away when she realized a large group of people surrounding a barrel of burning something. A few of the burlier men turned their heads and stared at her menacingly through their dirty raggedy beards. A few of the haggard and bent women managed to turn and throw their own crooked glances at her. One man through up his arms and yelled something that Tali just managed to make out.

"Get outta 'ere, you alien scum!"

Scum… is that what she was to these people, these urchins? If she was scum then what were these people? Tali tried to fathom the idea of the condition that these people lived every day of their lives, cold, alone, afraid, and forgotten. These people were the garbage that no one even tried to pick up; easier to forget then to fix was what most governments developed for the poor. Tali lowered her head at her thoughts. She wondered what she was expecting, a nice home on the hill, the home that Shepard had given her.

She managed to look over at Shepard who equally looked up to look at her, the pain of the memories ravaging his happy eyes and joyful disposition.

"This is where I used to play…" Shepard said, not even looking out of the window, but playing off his vivid memory of the slums.

Tali looked out the window again to see a muddy lot with piles of trash scattered about in the corners and along the edges where two large condemned apartments that held the few people who would risk their lives for a roof sat and glared. The amount of broken glass and the pieces of metal that scattered the small barren field just made Tali sick to her stomach.

"How can humans disregard their people like this?" Tali asked, obviously upset at the conditions that she was seeing.

"It's easy… you forget…" Shepard said, staring blankly at the seat in front of him.

"I know its bad Shepard, but forgetting just seems too easy."

"Too easy! Forgetting this wasn't easy Tali! This stuff becomes ingrained in your head as each day you have to survive!" Shepard angrily spat.

"Then you are just like the government that you hated all of those years ago. You rose out of the mud and never went back to grab hold of the other hands that were desperate reaching out trying to escape the suffocating filth, waiting for somebody, anybody to risk themselves to grab them!" Tali retorted.

Shepard suppressed his anger to see the reality of the way that he had ran away from everything. He looked out the window again as if some answer would pass by. None did. He tried to think of a reason why that it was impossible to look back, but he found none. He found himself stuck in the rut that this hellhole had dug for him.

"I don't know how to help them…" Shepard admitted.

Tali looked at Shepard with a mixture of anger and confusion. She tapped the taxi driver on the shoulder.

"Stop the taxi…"

Before Shepard had time to even think why she wanted the taxi to stop she already had the door open and she jumped out of the taxi.

"Tali! No!" Shepard reached out after her in an attempt to grab something and keep her in the taxi, but he knew he was too slow. He quickly slid out of the taxi and jumped out to see Tali walking back to his old house. The same direction with the barrel hugging cretins that had yelled at Tali. Shepard started to run, but not enough to draw the sinister glares of the surrounding monsters. "Tali! Stop!" Shepard yelled.

"Open your eyes Shepard! These people need you!"

The yelling caught the attention of the barrel huggers. One glanced briefly at Shepard, but the others quickly caught site of the alien in the street. Some of them grumbled about it, others pulled out their assortment of broken debris that they used as weapons.

"You get away from us alien! We don't want no diseases you carry!" yelled a large, hairy, burly man wearing an old, dirt jacket.

"I want to help you!" Tali yelled at him.

"Killing us isn't helping! That's all you aliens do… kill us! Get outta here!" the man waved the large piece of wood over his head.

Tali flinched from the brutality and probably the stupidity of the man waving the wood. She asserted herself more as she thought about Hani. She wasn't going to hide from this battle.

"When have we killed you? When have you even seen a quarian? When have an alien ever given anyone a disease!" Tali yelled angrily walking towards the man who appeared thrown off-guard at the bravery of the frail alien in front of him. He stepped forward menacingly. Shepard began to run over to Tali, sensing the danger that she was causing.

"Tali! Drop it!" Shepard yelled.

The man smacked the piece of wood on his hand as he walked forwards. Tali pulled her knife from her leg sheath as she stepped forward. Shepard could feel the tensions building as he quickly ran over to Tali. Right when he thought Tali would strike the man she turned to the side and threw her knife away and turned back to the man who appeared thrown off guard by this act.

"I am no here to kill you! I came to help!" The man appeared to listen to her more now, uncertain of his own actions at challenging her.

"How can you help us?" the man questioned in disbelief.

Shepard slowed down as he looked the mean looks of the people fade from their faces and a look that was unknown, foreign, alien to them spread across their faces. A look of desperate hope. The false masks of anger and callousness faded for a brief second. Even Shepard began to feel the hope that Tali was bringing to these people; his heart raced. Tali pulled out a data pad and opened her Omni-tool. The people stared at the strange glowing device that they had never had the opportunity to have. She dialed in a few numbers and flipped a few holographic switches before she handed them the pad.

"Here…"

The man reached over, keeping his distance, and grabbed the pad. He looked at it briefly before he dropped the piece of wood, his eyes bulging from his head. He gave a double take on Tali before Shepard saw the glittering tears in the man's eyes start to fall to the ground in the same fashion that he had dropped his weapon. He walked forwards and wrapped his hands around Tali, picking her up as he did so. Shepard walked slowly over just to ensure that nothing else went bad.

The man walked over to his group and showed them the pad. The others turned to Tali and smiled as they stared at the pad. A few of them began to sob while others stared in disbelief.

"Thankya miss… I-I don't even know what to say… I… I've been so rude… I'm sorry…" The man said with sadness, though the smile that had cracked on his face showed his inner feelings.

"You just need someone to give you a chance… for someone to remember you… Make things right and help others get out of this place… don't ruin the chance." Tali said, feeling the fear that had built up in her body slowly melt away. The people began to cheer and clap and make their way to their sick families that were scattered in the surrounding buildings. Shepard walked over to Tali's side, almost in disbelief at the events that had unfolded.

"I… I don't know what to say Tali…" Shepard said. "I guess I will say that I am sorry…"

"You were blinding yourself Shepard… Just needed to be woken up."

"Right…"

We can go now if you want…"

Shepard turned to see an empty street. He turned to Tali and laughed.

"I guess we will be walking until we can find another cab."

"Sorry Shepard. Next time we should take our own shuttle."

* * *

Kal and Natalie walked down the sidewalk to the local movie theater. Natalie had her arm wrapped in Kal's arm. Kal was still nervous about this who date thin, but he quickly steadied his nerves when he saw the theater come into view.

"Is this it?" Kal asked.

"Ya! Isn't it beautiful?"

Kal looked at the dim lights and the broken brick that had been stained by some unknown disease filled liquid that was either sprayed or dripped on the walls.

"If you say so…"

They walked up to the ticket booth. Kal, being a gentleman and a soldier, paid for the tickets for the movie that they were going to see. They took their seat, Natalie on the left and Kal on the right. The credits began to whiz by on the screen, presenting the entire works of Shakespeare by the entire elcor group, a three week event. Kal laughed at a few of the credits as he began to feel more comfortable, but he still wanted to ask Natalie about the thugs that were outside her house.

"So who were those people outside of your house?" Kal asked.

Natalie sighed. "Oh that was Lock and his gang… Lock has a thing for me, but I think they are all little kids playing with guns…"

"You're… friends with that creep?"

"Hell no! He thinks I am, but I've told him, right to his face that I want nothing to do with him and his gang!" The lights dimmed in the theater. "The shows about to start… We'll talk about this later…" Natalie said.

* * *

Krog sat in his hospital bed with the video feed of Tali sitting with Shepard in the cave when they had first met. For the first time he felt her fear and the sorrow of losing Shepard at that second. He sighed and shook his head as he pressed a few buttons, deleting the video forever. He opened up a small device that showed a small blinking dot on the edge of the screen. He was about to clear the tracking parameters off of the device when he hesitated. He looked back at the device before he slid it back into his pocket.

He slipped his armor back on, testing the weight and the flexibility that he had lost from being out of it. He looked at the familiar cut climbing up the side of the armor. He remembered how close Tali had come to gutting out his neck with that knife of hers. He smiled at the memories as he clipped the shotgun back onto his back. He looked down at his hand for a few seconds. He took off the glove to reveal the robotic hand that had taken the place where his hand had been. He sighed and slipped the glove back on to his hand.

He stood up and finally became aware of the lack of feeling in his right foot when he remembered that that too had been removed. He sat back down and had a hard look at his body. He began to remember every thing that had almost killed him. He began to realize how lucky he was over the centuries. He squeezed his hands together as he looked up into the mirror to see the large slashes across his face along with the faint glow of the cybernetic eye that he had installed after his first battle with Shepard. He bolstered his will and quickly connected the last straps of his armor and stood up and left the room. He walked back to his ship and plugged in the tracking device to a large holographic image of the galaxy. Instantly a picture of Earth zoomed in with a marker blinking on the surface of it.

Krog stared at the dot for some time before he turned the ship on and powered up the engines. He flicked the autopilot to earth and gunned it. He unclipped his shotgun and sat down in his chair, feeling the grip and the weight. He sat down on his chair and rested his head on his hand. He closed his eyes as he thought about his confrontation with Shepard and Tali. He almost smiled at the idea as he clipped himself in and dozed off to get the sleep that he had denied himself for so long.


	68. Chapter 68: Influence

_Krog found himself on the street of Earth with Shepard crawling away from him, blood dripping from his head and his legs useless. Krog walked over to him and dropped the shotgun that he had used to kill everyone before Shepard, but Shepard appeared luckier than other prey. He reached out and turned Shepard over showing his bloody and broken face, but still teaming with courage. Krog laughed at how pitiful Shepard looked as he slowly eased his hands down onto Shepard's neck, lifting him high into the air. He felt the flailing of his legs and the gagging him choking._

_He looked into Shepard's eyes as they teared up and became blood shot. He was about to laugh out loud when he heard a small voice._

"_Father…?"_

_Krog moved Shepard's squirming body out of the way to see a small quarian child looking at Shepard. He felt all the happiness of killing Shepard leave him. He looked back at Shepard's eyes and tried to rekindle those feelings again, but he brought his attention back to the kid. When he looked back, the kid was no longer a quarian, but an asari and she was looking at him._

"_Father…?"_

_His arms began to shake as he began to feel the confused and scared look of his child standing in front of him. His hands gave way and he dropped Shepard who landed on the ground coughing. He wanted to walk over to the child, but when he reached out and stepped forward the child ran away. He turned around when he heard crying and found Tali's broken body laying on the ground with a quarian kid crying above it. He blinked once and the image quickly switched. He saw Liara's body on the ground with his daughter crying above her staring at him._

_He started to shake even more as he walked over to the body of his love and crying child. He fell to his knees as he held her head in his hands, still shaking with the reality of the situation. He turned around just in time to see the dark barrel of a shotgun held by a dark shadow wearing a brown cloak. The sound of the shotgun went in slow motion._

Krog jumped out of his chair at the sound. He felt his face with the sweat that had accumulated on it during his long sleep. He breathed a couple times and squeezed the stock of his shotgun, breathing deeply. He looked down at the time date for his arrival and found that he was in ten minutes of Earth. He activated the shutters on the shuttle to see the blue, green, and gray planet in front of him. He broadcasted the necessary codes to the defense system, codes that he had acquired from Liara a few days earlier.

* * *

After Tali had picked up her knife and returned it to the rightful place on her leg, she joined Shepard at his side. Shepard looked around the streets, and they became less dank and miserable. He actually felt himself smile at the familiar surroundings as he felt Tali wrap her arm around his and lace her fingers in his. Shepard looked over to her and struggled to say the words that he had wanted to say after her confrontation with the man.

"Thank-you Tali…" He smiled as he stared at her.

Tali felt herself smile too. This was the first time that he had thanked her for disobeying him and she found it quite attractive. She looked at Shepard for a few, contemplating her desires at that moment.

"Shepard?"

"Yes Tali?"

"Watch this…"

Tali flicked open her Omni-tool and punched a few buttons. Within seconds a shuttle swooped down in front of them with no driver. Shepard smiled and turned to Tali.

"That's stealing…"

"I call it borrowing in case of emergency."

They both sat down in the leather exterior. Shepard grabbed the leather bound wheel and turned it gently, testing the tension of the wheel; it was smooth and responsive. He flicked the top chassis down which hissed closed as the interior pressurized. He activated the ships navigation and was about to punch in the coordinates when he found that he didn't know where they were going next.

"So where are we going next?" Tali looked at him thoughtfully. She stretched arms above her head and made small exaggerated grunting noises.

"I'm pretty tired… all this excitement wears out a girl. Let's find a place so we can have a little alone time…" Tali said.

Shepard looked at her and nodded a few times. "I am pretty tired… let's go get a room and relax a few before we head out."

Tali smiled at his proposition and waved her feet around as they lifted off and made their way to the nicer end of town. The cityscape scraped the sky with its sword-like super structures made from glass and stone. It reminded Tali of Illium just with a different lighting. The sun reflected and refracted through the layers of glass causing a kaleidoscope of colors and focus points that it felt like a the whole city was one big club light show. Shepard flew the entire distance to the towering hotel complex on manual. Tali laughed at him as he almost hit the side of the parking complex.

They both exited the parking garage and walked down the glass walkway that connected the two buildings and made their way to the lobby. Once they had rented out their room, they made their way up to the luxury suite which was the only room they had available. Shepard opened the door and poked his head inside to see that the room, though large, was still quite basic. He found a large bed, a bathroom with a shower unit and a tub, a computer, a large TV, and a stunning view of the city.

Shepard stretched while Tali plopped herself down on the bed. She popped off her mask and took a deep breath of the room in, it was scented. She smiled at being this free from her suit causing her to almost laugh with happiness. She pulled out one of the syringes that she had kept in one of her pockets and injected herself with another dose of the miracle "cure" for her "condition. She was starting to get used to accepting the fact that she would be one of the only quarians living outside of their suits; she didn't like the prospect of being exiled like that from her own selfish motives, but she figured that eventually Mordin would develop something to administer to all of the quarian people to bolster their immune systems. Shepard tore his shirt off and walked over to the bathroom scratching his head.

"I'm going to take a shower… care to join me?" Shepard asked, extending his hand out to her.

Tali laughed and jumped up. She wanted to feel water again. She unclipped and depressurized the seals to her suit as she walked towards him, every swing of her hips exaggerated to be more seductive. By the time she had made it to Shepard, her suit was already loose and only a few straps away from falling off. She walked into the shower, a little nervous at first, but when she felt Shepard walk up next to her, she felt his aura of security soothe her doubting wounds. Shepard reached over and grabbed the knob, turning it slightly causing the flow of water to fall over them.

Tali closed her eyes as she felt the soothing water touch her skin and slide down her body. She shivered slightly from the shock of feeling water again, but she started to laugh when the memory of Pragia returned. She felt Shepard's arms slide past her sides and embrace her stomach. She smiled and stretched one arm back to feel Shepard as they slowly rocked back and forth in the water.

The shower went quicker than Tali expected. She found herself drying off with the towel that Shepard had thrown her. Shepard had wrapped his towel around his waist making a dress-like style. She was about to laugh, believing it was a joke, but then she remembered how he had walked out of his shower on the Normandy. She held the towel out and wrapped it around her waist, following Shepard's movements and wrapping it tightly around her. Shepard watched her and smiled. He looked in the mirror and frowned when he saw that he had not shaved in a couple of days.

"I'm going to shave… if you want you can go get dressed."

Tali walked out of the bathroom so that she could get something to wear. Her soft footsteps made no noise as she gently walked across the beautiful wood floor that was cold to the touch. Tali picked up her suit and watched as two, long pieces of fabric fall to the floor. She stared at them, knowing that Shepard wore them on his feet. She picked them up and looked over them and back down at the cold floor. She shrugged and carried them over to the bed where she held up her feet, slowly spreading her toes and returning them back to normal.

She looked at the long pair of socks and back at her feet. She smiled at the socks as she fiddled with the socks in her hands and lifted her foot up, resting it on her other foot. She slid the first sock onto her foot, seeing that they surprisingly fit her. She wanted to laugh, but she looked back at the bathroom and silenced her giggles. She slid the other sock on and put both feet on the ground. The feel of the cotton and the warmth of the socks made her smile as she stretched her toes in the socks. She stood up and took a step forwards. She almost fell as the socks slipped on the polished wood surface.

She breathed out slowly as she held her arms out for balance. She reapplied her weight and walked again. She smiled as she found the correct way to walk with socks on. She pushed off with her left foot and spun in a circle on her right foot. When she stopped she saw Shepard standing in the doorway of the bathroom, staring at her with a toothbrush in his hands.

Tali brushed the hair out of her eyes. "Shepard! I was curious…" She smiled at him.

Shepard walked back into the bathroom and spit in the sink, and he cleaned off his toothbrush. Tali watched him, unsure if she had upset him by wearing his socks. He turned around and smiled at her. He walked out to her and grabbed her tender hands and looked into her soft eyes.

"You look good in socks…" Shepard said.

Tali looked down at the socks and stretched her toes again, watching the fabric stretch. Shepard walked over and picked up his pack and pulled out a fresh pair of socks and sat on the bed. Tali slid over to him and sat beside him, smiling. He picked up her foot and removed the sock from her foot. She frowned at first, but then he slipped the new sock on instead. She smiled even wider showing her brilliant teeth. Shepard then slipped another pair of socks from his pack and put them on his feet. He also handed Tali a t-shirt to wear. She slid it on and looked down at her towel dress and was about to remove it when Shepard put his hand on her hand and shook his head.

Shepard stood up and helped Tali up. He ran down the kitchen and slid five feet. Tali looked at him and smiled. She rand forwards and slid right up to Shepard. She laughed alongside Shepard who grabbed her sides and tickled her. The tickling caused Tali to forget about her footing and she stepped wrong causing her feet to slid out from under her. Shepard caught her and looked into her eyes as she stared up at him, terrified at first, but then she started laughing again. He bent down to her and planted a gentle kiss on her lips as he picked up her feet and carried her over to the bed. He set her down and picked up his clothes.

Tali slid up the side of the bed until she was up by the pillows. She smiled at him and bit her lip at him, the shyness had been depleted. Shepard smiled and crawled up the bed. He brought his face inches away from her face, her silver eyes flipping back and forth between both of Shepard's eyes.

"What was the point of giving you a shirt when you just want to take it off?" Shepard asked. He was about to kiss her when a large knock on the door made him jump. He turned to the door and stared at it. "One second…"

Shepard jumped off of the bed and walked across the room, over to the door. He had just undid the lock and turned the knob when the door burst open, hitting Shepard in the face. He fell to the floor with Tali jumping up from the bed to grab a weapon, but she froze when she heard the locking mechanism of a shotgun click into place. She looked up to see Krog standing in the doorway, holding the shotgun out at her, though something didn't seem quite right. She noticed how his arm was shaking while he held the gun.

Krog looked down at Shepard who had sat up to look at him, but no fear existed in those fierce eyes of his. Krog moved the shotgun to Shepard and felt his finger struggle with the trigger. The shaking started to become more noticeable. Krog looked down at Shepard and back at Tali. He could hear the kid in his head yelling. He lowered the shotgun and hit himself in the head.

"Shepard!" He pointed the gun straight up and blasted a hole in the roof. "Why did you have to do it Shepard!" Krog yelled.

Shepard stayed on the ground and kept the same stare at Krog. Tali slowly reached for her knife in her suit. Krog looked at her and pointed the gun at her again.

"Don't you even think of doing anything!" He looked back at Shepard who casually stood up. He stared into Krog's eyes knowing that the krogan was, for some reason, unable to pull the trigger. People in the hall ran past screaming as they saw the krogan standing in the room with a shotgun. Shepard looked over at the people and back at Krog who was shaking even more.

"What do you want Krog?"

"I want…!" He started strong, but it quickly became weak. "I wanted to tell you…" He took a deep breath in. "I wanted to tell you that you have my allegiance in your fight against the Reapers…" He turned around and punched a chunk of the door out as he left the room. Shepard kept the brave look on his face as he heard the Krog smash his way down the hallway. When he knew that he was gone, Shepard's body began to shake as the pent up fear that he had held broke out. He turned to Tali who was shaking just as bad. He crawled over to her and cradled her head on his chest. He breathed out slowly and tried to calm Tali as much as he was trying to comfort himself.

He stood up and walked over to the door and closed it, engaging every lock that he could find. He turned to Tali again, finally feeling the blood running off of his head. He reached up and felt the cut in his head where the door had connected. Tali stood up and walked over to him, tears in her eyes, but she didn't let a single fall until she had made it to Shepard. She breathed out, broken by the adrenaline that was still coursing through her body. Shepard tried to make a joke out of it.

"Was that a bit too much excitement?"

Tali laughed even though the joke was not funny at all. They held each other trying to comfort each other.

"We better get changed before the cops come to investigate."

Tali nodded and they both walked over to their clothes to get changed.


	69. Chapter 69: A New Face

Tali frantically slid her suit back on as the sirens blared closer and closer to the hotel that she and Shepard were taking residence. She looked over at Shepard who already had a shirt and pants on while he looked at the deep cut above his eyelid where the door had slammed into him. She buckled up her suit and flipped on the seals. The final piece of the suit, her visor, sealed into place just as a group of policemen ran into the room with their guns drawn.

"Is everyone okay!" the first police officer said.

Tali looked at him and shook her head as she felt her voice fail on her when she wanted to speak. Shepard walked out of the bathroom with a bloodstained rag pressed against his head. One of the younger police officers jumped slightly and quickly turned his gun on Shepard in which he simply raised his hand in defense.

"Sorry sir…" the police officer said. "Do you need an ambulance?"

"What for? This? Tis but a scratch!" Shepard laughed along with one of the elder police officers.

"Very well." He turned his attention to Tali. "Are you hurt… er… ma'am?"

"I'm fine… I'm just a little shook up that's all." Tali said, folding her arms up to her body as if she was cold.

"Did you see the man who did this?" another officer asked, pulling out a data pad.

"A krogan…" Shepard said.

"Description?"

"Krogan-like… I don't know what to tell you. He had a bunch of scars." He looked over at Tali.

"That's about every Krogan in existence." the officer said, dropping his data pad.

"I don't know what to tell you. He was surprisingly generically krogan." Shepard said giving a half smile.

"If you see or hear from this Krogan again, call the authorities immediately."

"Can do officer." Shepard said, giving each and every man a strong handshake.

The officers left the room as Shepard walked over and grabbed onto Tali's hand and waved as the officers cautioned off the area. The last officer stood at the door and turned around.

"If you have any personals in the room, I would gather them all now and choose a new room or leave the planet if you wish."

Shepard turned around and picked up his single bag and turned to Tali and nodded. They walked past the officer and through the holographic caution tape that buzzed and turned red as they walked through it. Shepard smiled at the assortment of poorly dressed spectators that had gathered outside of the caution tape. A few of the humans recognized who he was and stared at him in awe while others were more focused on the fact that his hand was firmly laced with a quarian.

They walked out of the hotel that was suddenly ablaze with life and looked across the street to see a very quaint looking movie theater. They saw no interesting movies playing so they decided to turn to the docking station so they could return to the Normandy, but then they saw Kal'Reegar emerge with a striking brunette hung around his arm laughing. Tali and Shepard looked at the scene for a few seconds before they decided to cross the street and surprise him.

"I just can't believe how nice you've been to me! I've never had anybody so understanding!" Shepard and Tali heard the woman laugh followed closely with Kal laughing with a nervous scratch of his head.

"I am just being polite…" Kal said in defense.

"Politeness is a rarity on Earth!" she laughed.

Kal looked around and saw Tali and Shepard stepping up on the edge of the sidewalk towards him. His feelings instantly started to flip-flop. He didn't know if he should hide or advance on them first. In the end, he just stood there until they had walked up to him and made the scene.

"Reegar!" Shepard yelled, hitting his shoulder with his hand and smiling. Tali looked over at the woman and smiled though the woman wouldn't know that she was or not.

"Shepard. Tali. What are you doing here?" Kal asked.

"We were going to get some sleep until a Krogan broke down the door, broke my face, pointed a shotgun at Tali, joined our fight against the Reapers, and left. No other good reason really." Shepard smiled.

"Trouble seems to follow you everywhere doesn't it Shepard?"

"Aren't you going to introduce me?" the woman asked curiously.

"Oh. Natalie this is Shepard. Shepard this is Natalie."

"I'm his girlfriend." Natalie said smiling. Kal looked at her and blushed under his helmet.

"You got yourself a girlfriend? You've only been here for two days and you already have the girls chasing after you!" Shepard laughed.

"And who is your lady friend?" Natalie asked.

"I'm Tali'Zorah… Shepard's wife." Tali said, stepping closer to Shepard and grabbing his hand tightly.

"Wife you say! Wow! I didn't even know that quarians could marry out of their own species!" she turned to Kal and smiled.

"You want to come see the Normandy?" Shepard asked Natalie smiling.

Kal's eyes grew as he tried to throw signs to Shepard that he didn't want to show her the Normandy, but Shepard ignored them with a smile.

"Would I ever!" the woman jumped with glee. "C'mon Kal! I want to see the ship you work on." Natalie said grabbing his hand and turning down the way that Tali and Shepard had started to take.

Shepard, Kal, Natalie, and Tali walked down the sidewalk in their small group. Tali stood by Shepard while Natalie smiled and rested her head on Kal's shoulder as they walked. They made it part way down the sidewalk when from an alleyway on the side a large, hairy man walked out. Natalie looked at Lock angrily while Kal tensed his muscles up for the fight.

"You piece of dirt… hangin' with my girl! I sho' you what happens when you hand wit' mah girl! Boys!" Lock yelled.

From the side alley way, a large group of thugs all wielding an assortment of weapons with a few having pistols walked out leering at them.

"Friends of yours Kal?" Shepard asked.

"Friends wouldn't be the best word…" Kal said pushing Natalie behind him as he prepped himself into a battle stance.

Shepard looked over at the thugs and looked at Tali.

"Are those pistols even loaded?" Shepard whispered to Tali.

"I think so…" Tali whispered to Shepard.

"Hey! You two! If you have somethin' to say then say it out loud for all of us to hear!" Lock yelled, unfolding a shotgun.

"We were merely wondering if any of your guns actually had ammo in them. I mean, she is the greatest engineer that this universe has known, and she has brought the fact that your gun" he looked over at one of the men holding a pistol. "is currently jammed and once you pull that trigger the round will fire the wrong way… killing you…" Shepard bluffed.

The man tried to keep his tough guy visage, but the glint of nervousness flickered through his eyes briefly. Lock looked at the nervous man and grunted.

"Even if that gun is jammed. We still have other weapons." Lock said pointing the gun at Tali and Shepard. "Now… we have nothing against you two and will happily let you go…" Lock said, taking on a diplomatic role.

"I'm afraid that I cannot let you antagonize a member of my crew…" Shepard said, maintaining the show of undying bravery in an attempt to dissuade the faltering group of thugs, but as long as Lock was being stubbornly brave then the group would follow.

"A member of your crew! What are you? A scum barge captain?" Lock laughed along with his gang.

"Now I don't want this to get dirty…" Shepard teased.

"What are you going to do about it? Huh?" Lock raised his eyebrows and lowered his eye down to aim his shotgun.

"Today has been eventful…" Shepard said turning to Tali who shook her head.

Kal looked over at Tali and Shepard in amazement at their show of courage. His eyes widened when he saw Tali rub her hands together nervously for only a second. He figured that they were trying to out-brave the gang, but he knew that it was failing horribly. He was about to lung forward and attack Lock when he caught Shepard walking up to the large leader.

"Now. Now. Now. Can't we come to some deal so that both of us can leave without any bruised egos." Shepard said extending his arms out.

"I gave this dirt a chance before and he messed up my whole gang…" Shepard looked over at Kal and smiled, almost laughing.

"So you aren't going to let him go?" Shepard asked.

"He is going to pay!"

"Are you sure you want to do that?"

"Why wouldn't I?"

"Because you have made a mistake that has already won the battle in our favor."

"What mistake is that?" Lock pressed his finger against the trigger as he was about to shear the head off of Kal's neck.

"You let me walk right up to you…" Shepard almost whispered in his ear.

Lock's heart jumped as he tried to swing the gun over to Shepard, but Shepard already had his hand on the gun, dragging it down towards the gun where a few rounds were fired into the ground. Shepard brought the gun back up and smashed the gun's barrel into Lock's nose sending a stream of blood down his face. The other members raised their weapons, but upon seeing their leader squirming on the ground holding his noise with his shotgun in the hands of Shepard made them cower. They raised their hands and dropped their guns.

Lock looked at them angrily. "You yellow pigs! Shoot them!" Lock yelled at them.

Shepard ejected the thermal clip and tossed the shotgun back on Lock's body. He turned to Kal, Natalie, and Tali and waved for them to proceed. Kal looked at the broken man laying on the ground trying to fit a thermal clip into the broken clip container that Shepard had bent slightly. He wanted to beat the man to a fine pulp, but the pull on his arm broke him from the trance as Shepard sensed his ambition and kept him walking.

The docking station was packed with people that had returned from the moon base. Most were soldiers, but a few were technicians that had been perfecting a new VI for the training program. Shepard remembered when he had cleared out the tri-complex moon base. He activated the shuttle to return to the orbital docking station where the Normandy had been docked.

The shuttle ride was pleasantly quiet as Tali and Shepard snuggled on one side while Kal and Natalie sat on the other side. Kal smiled under his visor when he watched Shepard and Tali, knowing that she was in good hands. He looked over at Natalie who turned to him and smiled. She wrapped her arm in his and rested her head on his shoulder and tried to snuggle with him. Kal was kind of stiff at first, but the more he accepted her pressure on his suit the more he felt himself relax and enjoy himself, something he didn't think possible.

The side doors opened an almost identical setting as the ground shuttle bay, except that the windows gave a more stunning view of the glowing planet. Shepard walked over to the map and scanned over it a few times. His fingers traced paths to certain areas of the space station, almost like he was trying to complete a maze. He eventually snapped his fingers and traced out an almost straight line.

Through the crowded corridors of the busy space station, Shepard, Tali, Kal, and Natalie walked to the 2C wing where the Normandy had been docked. Shepard activated the airlock and stepped into the decontamination area. Natalie looked awe -struck as the bright beam passed over her and a small steam filled the room. The doors hissed open revealing the cockpit where Joker was sleeping with a magazine of "Ship Accessories for the Galactic Playboy" draped over his face. Shepard turned Natalie's attention to the glowing holographic of the ship at the far end of the ship. She stared at it and slowly walked towards it like a moth to light.

"This… This is… amazing…" Natalie said.

A few of the other crewmen looked up at her as she walked towards the main hub of the CIC. She managed to break her gaze to see the other intricacies of the ship's design. This was the first time she had ever been on a ship that didn't look like a cruise liner. Kal walked over to her. She looked over to him and smiled with tears in her eyes.

"Kal… Why wouldn't you want me to see this? This is amazing!" She reached over and planted a kiss on Kal's visor. Kal's eyes flickered around the woman's face. He suddenly felt why Tali had desired freedom from her suit. He would have given anything for just the moment to take his mask off and feel her lips on his, but he knew that his odds of living would be slim. He cleared his throat as he felt the embarrassment flood over his face. It grew even more when she pulled away from him, and wiped his visor off. She looked at him and bit her bottom lip and swayed her hips back and forth.

"Thank you Kal…" she said to him.

"Don't mention it…" Kal barely said.

Natalie turned to Shepard. "I need to get going… thanks for allowing me to see your ship… I hope to see Kal again if you don't mind."

Shepard looked over at Kal who gave him a look that Tali would give him every once and awhile. "What can you do?" Shepard asked Natalie.

"What?"

"What skills do you have?"

"Umm… I can cook…"

"If you want a job here on the Normandy we can always use an assistant cook."

Natalie smiled. "But what about my shop?"

"It will be there when you get back."

"When will back be?"

"Whenever you want, and whenever we have time."

"Let me grab my things!" Natalie squealed running to the door.

Shepard smiled and looked over at Kal. "Well aren't you going to help her lover boy?"

"Yes sir…" Kal laughed walking after Natalie. Shepard smiled and turned to Tali who had been staring at him the entire time.

"You are being very nice to Kal…" Tali said.

"I owe him a favor. Compliments of auntie Shala."

"She didn't tell you did she?"

Shepard nodded. "She told me everything."


	70. Chapter 70: Jump

Nothing much happened in the coming months. Tali slowly became more and more noticeably pregnant making her even more sharp tongued if someone questioned her about it. She had also took the liberty of not wearing her gloves anymore as a way of feeling the engine and getting to know it on a more intimate level of which Shepard guffawed. Nine months flew past like nothing. There were only routine mission stops of diplomatic importance and only a few where a firefight erupted, but nothing too intense. The series of calm and relaxing settings of each of the missions appeared to be anticlimactic to the coming Reaper apocalypse that was on the horizon.

Shepard had received countless emails from the council informing him of the slow progress and process that they were taking to insure the safety of the galaxy, dragging their feet again. He also received word from Zaeed who had taken over the Blue Suns Mercenary group and gained the allegiance of the other mercenary groups by his only diplomatic means, bullets and determination. Shepard had also received word from Wrex who had been diligently trying to unite the krogans of which he was still only about a tenth of the way done.

Shepard looked at the galactic map were he had placed markers to show the support that he has received and those that were at the moment supporting him. He also looked at the small marker sitting on Rannoch, where the once displaced population of the quarian people were currently living on while a ring of geth lived on the space stations surrounding it. Their large residential fleet was being slowly transformed, with the help from the turians which Shepard had convinced to help, into the largest and most formidable fleet the galaxy had ever seen. The turians, in return, would have a three hundred year treaty with the quarian people and the means to call the fleet into action if war would arise in turian space.

Though the markers were far stretching and numerous, the true scope of the the rest of the galaxies allegiance was still up in the air. Shepard had devoted his free time to travel to the star systems, to every populated area and pledge for support from the inhabitants; some accepted, others did not. Shepard looked over his crew and knew that their allegiance was firmly placed in him. He looked back at the elevator and remembered Natalie who had spiced up the food in the mess hall, gaining praise and admiration from the crew along with Gardner who had taken a fancy in her creative takes on the rations.

Shepard lowered his head slightly as he remembered Thane being in the med bay. His disease had taken a toll on his lungs and he was being outfitted with a few cybernetic upgrades that wouldn't save his life, but they would increase his life expectancy for a few more years. He remembered how Thane had refused to get the cybernetics and how hard it was for Shepard to convince him otherwise, but Shepard smiled lightly knowing that he would have Thane standing next to him at the final battle.

Samara, though her agreement was to stay to finish off the Collectors, had informed Shepard that she had decided to stay. She reasoned that the true enemies at work had been the Reapers and the their puppets, the Collectors so her promise to him was changed slightly to increase her stay. Garrus and Miranda appeared to be actually in genuine love with each other this time around though they again tried to hide it in fear of Shepard hammering down the crew infatuation clause or some other commander code. Legion was still the same and he stood in the same place on the ship. Shepard always took the time to walk down to his little room and ask him why he took his armor, but he simply stated that there was a hole and he had to fix it.

Jack and Grunt had transformed part of the cargo bay into a wrestling ring. Shepard would always take the time to watch Jack and Grunt go at it. There normally wasn't a winner. Kal and Jacob had made quite a few upgrades to the weapons along with Mordin who appeared set on beating them. Kal and Natalie were still hitting it off quite well though whenever Natalie would bring up "seeing Kal's homeworld" Kal normally refused and told her that one day they would go, but not right now. Natalie normally threw on an angry face and crossed her arms angrily, but she couldn't complain with the position that she now possessed on a starship.

Shepard turned around to look up at the cockpit where Joker and EDI were complaining about bookmarks, books, or maybes marks, Shepard enjoyed the mystery more. Kelly had been quiet over the past few months though she continued to give psychological profiles on the entire crew just to make sure that the long periods of not shooting something would be causing them to crave a small firefight in the showers. Most surprising was Kasumi who walked around the ship and talked to everyone. She had not activated her little "keepsake" for some time and she appeared to be enjoying herself.

Ken and Gabby fell back into their tiny conversations of bickering though only Tali who had been in the engineering deck, ignoring Chakwas's warnings of the core's effect on the baby, had seen them kiss after their little fights. Every once in awhile Ken would challenge Shepard to another game of Skyllian Five Poker claiming to have gained an upper hand technique for discovering bluffs. Shepard still won with Gabby laughing on the sidelines; Ken would have a small fight with her in engineering when they went back to work.

Shepard walked to the elevator so that he could get some sleep. He felt the elevator climb slowly up to his dim-lit loft. The doors opened to reveal Tali standing at the fish tank, one hand on her hip with the other hand on her stomach. She smiled in the dim light, knowing that Shepard had entered the room.

"We should go back… I want to see it again." Tali said.

Shepard walked up behind her and slid his arms around her stomach. "I told Shala about the spot of land that was ours. She told the Admiralty Board and they have closed that section of the planet down of habitation… for the time being."

"I want to have neighbors Shepard…"

"And we will get some, but right now I want to keep it a haven to escape the world, just you, me, and the baby."

"Speaking of the baby… What do you think her name should be?" Tali asked.

"I've been thinking about it, but I want you to decide."

"Shepard…" Tali laughed. "make the lady do the work like always."

"I want her to have a quarian name." Tali stared into his eyes and smiled.

"Let me think about it for a little while longer." Tali said, returning her attention back on the purple and yellow fish.

She reached into her pocket and pulled out the last injection that she would have to take. It was almost a touching moment for her as the final needle prick pierced her skin. She knew that she would never have to wear her suit again, but with this newfound freedom, she found that she was still afraid and exposed. She felt Shepard's hands slide back from her and leave her body. She smiled and turned to see Shepard walking over to the bed where he flopped down and let out a huge sigh. Tali walked over to the bed and laughed as she slowly lowered herself into a seated position on the bed. She slowly fell back onto Shepard's stomach and felt the strength of his lungs taking in air softly and releasing it slowly.

As much as Shepard wanted to stay up and help Tali come up with a name for the child, he felt himself fall into a deep sleep. Tali was unaware of the collapse of consciousness that Shepard had just experienced. She talked to him softly, telling him about her day, the stares, and the questions. She waited for a response, but she heard only silence.

"Shepard?" She asked, looking off to the side to see that his eyes were closed.

She watched him to make sure he wasn't faking. When he started to snore gently, she almost laughed, but she forced herself to slowly slide off of his stomach and lay next to him. She looked over at the visor on the table, the visor that she hadn't worn all day. She did not feel sick or anything wrong with her. She closed her eyes and felt the wafting air of sleep take her.

* * *

Lorik walked up to a quarian man who was sitting at a nearby table in one of Noveria's many restaurants. He sat down beside him though he didn't look directly at him as he spoke.

"That Shadow Broker wants your answer."

"I know. I know. I don't know what to tell him."

"Just answer the question." Lorik said, gaining in nervousness of the people around him.

"I don't know how to answer the question…"

"Did she show any signs of betraying him? It's not that hard of a question."

"Tell him no then… she avoided me too much and I don't think she will be coming back here any time soon especially after your little spiel with the quarian girl."

"That was an accident. Some of the guards became a bit too… trigger happy."

"I don't think trigger happy would be the best word for it."

"Can we forget about that? That was a long time ago."

"Not in the eyes of the Broker."

Lorik grunted and rose from the chair and made his way back to his security room where he could inform the shadows of the quarians answer that he had waited for almost a year. The crowds still felt like the same crowd after all these years. He looked back at the table had left to see that the quarian had already dissolved into the crowd. Just as he was about to turn his attention back in front of him he bumped into a quarian girl wearing a stylish green suit.

"Hey! Watch where you are going Lorik!" Hani laughed upon seeing who it was.

"Sorry ma'am." Lorik gave his sympathies to the girl who he was unfamiliar with.

"Don't worry old man. I forgive ya." She patted him on the shoulder and disappeared back into the crowd.

Lorik looked back at the confrontation, but he couldn't shake the feeling that he knew her, but he couldn't put his finger on it. He shrugged it off and walked back to his security post and sat down in his chair. He slowly became aware of the hands that had made their way around his shoulders squeezing him.

"Did he tell you no?" the Shadow Broker asked.

"Yes he did"

The hands disappeared from his shoulders, allowing Lorik to take in a deep breath of relief. He turned around to see the dark cloaked figure looking out of the window at the crowd. He watched a young quarian girl who was running around with an asari; blue and green appeared to mesh well. He turned back to Lorik and smiled.

"I require nothing more…" he said as he slowly began to fade into the darkness.

Lorik felt his nerves slowly begin to ease as the dark figure in front of him faded away. He breathed out and looked back down at the large crowd. He hoped to find what the Shadow Broker had been looking at, but all he saw was the abstract color of the crowd.

"I need a drink…" Lorik said to himself a he rubbed his face and walked out the door. "Maybe the club or something.

Zaeed sat in his chair, looking over at the reports of his mercenary group. He looked up as his door slammed open revealing three mercenaries. Zaeed casually looked up at them, his hand already on the shotgun that was under his desk.

"What do you want?"

"We want Vido back…"

"You want Vido back…? Have you seen Vido?" Zaeed asked.

"No… but we are fed up with you!" one of them yelled.

Zaeed thought about it for some time. He turned to the screen behind him and pressed a button, revealing a picture of Vido's body in the mech with half his head blown off. Zaeed turned back to them.

"Now… are you sure you want your Vido back?" He asked. Almost tempted to just pull the trigger now and get this over with, but he decided to see if these idiots would fall back into line.

"You…You killed him…"

"What are you? Vorcha? Of course I killed him, and if you stand any longer in my room, I will kill you."

One of the men tried to pull his pistol, but the sudden explosion out of the bottom of Zaeed's desk blew him against the door in a bloody mess. The other two instantly froze and looked over at Zaeed's broken desk where they saw him holding a Krogan Claymore. They were surprised that none of the wide spreading shrapnel hit them, and they valued that more than anything.

"Now! Any one of you two wish to try anything because this baby has an advanced clip size. Three shots before I have to reload! So which one of you dogs are next?"


	71. Chapter 71: Evolution

Shepard woke up the next morning to the sound of heavy breathing. The lights were on in the room, which blinded his still adjusting eyes and caused him to become disoriented of his surroundings. He managed to make out something on the side of the bed, something that caused his heart to quickly beat faster, driving the fuzz out of his vision.

Tali was sitting on the side of the bed, sweat running down her face as she rested her hand on her stomach. She looked over at Shepard who had instantly jumped out of bed and crouched in front of her.

"Shepard…" Tali struggled to say as her voice quivered with the pain or discomfort that was shaking her body.

Shepard quickly ran his fingers through Tali's sweat soaked hair and rubbed her face. "Don't worry. I'll get Chakwas." Shepard assured her.

Tali continued to breath fast and hard as the convulsions of her body increased slightly. Shepard made it halfway to the intercom when Tali made a strange series of moans. Shepard quickly looked back at Tali who were now lying on her back, her breathing increasing every second. He quickly pressed the intercom and called for Chakwas up to the cabin. He ran back to Tali's side and held her hand as the small droplets of sweat ran down her face, her eyes transfixed on a point on the ceiling.

"Chakwas is coming." Shepard ran his fingers through her hair again.

The seconds that it took for Chakwas and a small team of crewmembers felt like hours as Shepard was forced to simply whisper assurances into her ear and to slowly stroke her head. He went with the group to the elevator, but Chakwas held out her hand so that he couldn't get on.

"I'm sorry commander, but there isn't enough room on here for all of us." Shepard nodded and looked down at Tali who had been placed on a stretcher to keep her in the most comfortable position that they could keep her.

The doors closed and the sound of the elevator slowly disappeared down the shaft. Shepard ran his hand on his face and realized how much sweat was actually running down his face. He took a couple of breaths and tried to calm his erratic heartbeat that he slowly became aware of during his wait for the elevator to return. He tried to slow his breathing, but his perception of time was destroyed by the waves of anxiety that was coursing through his veins causing his sense of time to be significantly slowed. He looked down at his hand for the time, but this only made him realize that he was still in his sleepwear.

He wondered if he should get changed before he ran down to the med-bay, but when the elevator doors opened, he disregarded all the questions and choices and jumped on, immediately pressed the med-bay floor. The elevator ride felt like the three years that he had before the Reapers would tear the galaxy apart. The door opened with Miranda who was in her official clothing staring at the doors to the med-bay. One hand was on her mouth in an attempt to hide her own worry for the happenings that were taking place. She glanced over at Shepard, which instantly drove the hand from her mouth, but as she tried to find something to say, the hand returned.

Shepard walked into the med-bay to see at least five people running around the small room. Chakwas was still in the middle with Tali lying on the table, tears falling from her eyes. Shepard walked past Thane who was still in a sedated state and tried to push through the crowd to get to Tali. Chakwas looked up to him and pointed at the door.

"You need to wait outside commander!" She yelled in the commotion that felt unreal.

Shepard managed to make eye contact with Tali who nodded knowingly at the circumstances that were forcing them to be apart at this crucial moment in their lives. Tali breathed a couple of teams before she forced herself to look away briefly to try to hide the tears that were not from the discomfort. She looked back at Shepard at the same time that the door closed blocking their connection.

Shepard stared at the point on the door that he had been looking at when it had destroyed the connection, knowing that it was still there. He felt himself grab his other hand and wring them together. He walked over to the mess hall table and sat down, Miranda following him closely. Once seated, he became aware of what he was doing with his hands and laughed slowly, even Miranda smiled.

"You two have bonded more than you make it out to be…" Miranda said, smiling. "I know the feeling… Sometimes I can feel what my sister is feeling. Sometimes I will do what she does, and then become aware of it later."

Shepard stared at his hands briefly before he looked at Miranda who had sat across from him. She managed a genuine grin, but she appeared to be uncomfortable in this position. She hit the table a few times and rose to her perfect posture, nodded, and walked back to her office to occupy her mind. Shepard folded his arms and buried his head to calm his nerves, but the unknown events taking place behind the shuttered windows of the med-bay burned curiosity onto his mind.

Shepard stood up and began to pace, his hands resuming their Tali-like wringing. He tried to breath and calm his nerves, but the more he breathed, the more he remembered waking up to the sound of breathing, the sound that drove these events into the light. He wanted to leave the room and try to find something to occupy his mind, but he felt a pull on his head anytime he tried to leave. He had to stay.

Shepard wiped off the new beads of sweat that had formed on his forehead. He decided to analyze the situation and make like Mordin or Legion, but he felt that that callousness was impossible for him to reach now. He released his last breath of air slowly and tried to collapse his mind into a meditative stance. He walked over to the mess hall table and sat on it, folding his legs under him. He closed his eyes and forced his body to relax. He focused himself until the boundaries of the world around him broke away and the freedom of the infinity filled his mind.

He broke out of the trance when he heard the sigh of one of the doors in the room. He opened his eyes to see Legion staring at him intently.

"Shepard Commander." His flaps pulsed to signify that he was talking.

"Legion."

"This installation would like to inquire the reasoning to why the table is taking the functionality of a chair?"

"I am trying to calm my nerves."

Legion stared at him inquisitively. Shepard stared at Legion. Legion turned around and walked to the elevator and left. Shepard looked after where Legion had walked, confused.

"What a strange robot." Shepard closed his eyes and tried to fall back into the recesses of his mind, but a presence made him open his eyes again. The cloaked figure would have made any other person jump, but at this point it merely annoyed Shepard. "What do you want?" The Shadow Broker turned to look at him.

"Meditating I see… Always calms the nerves…" It said smiling at him.

"You haven't answered my question…"

"I was just in the neighborhood and I decided to have a little peek at history in the making."

"When are you not in the neighborhood?"

"When I choose not to be."

Shepard shook his head at the vague answers that never told him anything. He looked past the Broker at the black shuttered windows of the soundproof med-bay. He tried to forget about the Broker and his constant meddling in his affairs, but he knew that the harder he tried the harder the Broker would hit back. When he decided, Shepard looked over at the dark spot in his vision that was the Broker, but instead he found nothing. He shook his head at the randomness of his visits.

The longer Shepard waited the more his emotions didn't make sense. At first he felt worried, but now he felt that the worry was really nervousness, but all of this thinking caused him simply to become annoyed at the situation of waiting. He looked down at his wringing hands and smiled feeling happiness join the chaos that was ravaging his mind.

* * *

Krog and Liara sat in one of the restaurants on Illium, Krog stuck out like a shotgun in a baby's crib. He looked around at the side-glances that he was receiving from the people around him. He clenched his fist at the annoying hatred that consumed his form. He felt his hand ease over to his mini-shotgun, but the smile from Liara, drove his senses back to the baby instead of the shotgun being in the crib.

"Why are we even here?" Krog growled to her.

"We are here to enjoy ourselves…" Liara softly whispered to him.

Krog sat back hard against his chair and dumped the alcohol in front of him into his mouth. He breathed out as he grabbed the bottle that was left at the table and filled his glass again.

"Now Krog… How can this be this bad for you? I mean, you went to a quarian wedding."

"This isn't the same…" Krog growled under his breath again.

Liara crossed her arms and grunted. "It's just dinner."

"Dinner with people that I can't hit…"

Liara looked around at the people. "Ignore them… Relax…"

The waiter came back with the plates of food. Liara was given a squid-like delicacy while Krog was given three plates of rare steaks, two on each plate; he considered it a much-needed diet from his inactivity. He managed to keep his cool as he used his silverware and manners while he ate; a few of the glances fell from him. He reached for the new think glass of water that was given to him, it didn't break, the rest of the glances fell.

Krog finished his steaks around the same time that Liara had finished her seafood. Krog wiped his face with the napkin and pressed the payment pad in front of him. He sighed and patted his stomach and looked at Liara who had rested her head on her hands and was staring at him. He was going to question the stare, but he remembered the other times that he had asked. He knew that she was in love with him and he was too, if not more though he was about to bring himself to become all shiny eyed and cute with her.

He felt his manners click in his head causing him to raise and walk behind Liara, pulling out her seat and grabbing her coat, which he draped over her shoulders. Liara smiled happily and slid herself under one of his arms and made her way out of the restaurant. The sun had gone down and the streets were dark with shadows. The wind bit bitterly at Liara's somewhat larger body that Krog had been quite protective about for the last few months. Krog took off his small coat and placed it over the one he had given her and wrapped his arms around her for another layer.

"Let's get you home…"

Krog and Liara walked down the dark streets of Illium, which to them was like a romantic walk down the beach. The sounds of thieves sneaking around the scream of victims and the gunshots of murderers and gangs were like crashing waves. One person even tried to jump them, but this merely was the highlight of Krog's night. They continued on their beautiful walk, the distant moan of a newly paraplegic man behind them made Krog smile.

They arrived at a large apartment where Krog lived with Liara. They rode the elevator up to their suite, which happened to take up the whole top floor along with a bridge that led to the adjacent skyscraper; they owned that floor too. Liara walked into the room commenting on Krog had handled the thief while Krog heartily laughed. Liara slid her coats off and threw them at the coat rack and walked over to the shower, stripping off her clothes as she went. Krog sat down on the soft bed and watched her. He shook his head as he felt himself stand up and make his way to the shower room.

* * *

Shepard paced outside of the room for several hours. He wanted to meditate like he had, but with Legion's constant intrusions he felt like he was being watched. When the doors to the med-bay opened with a very tired looking Chakwas, Shepard smiled at her. She took a couple breaths and presented the door to him.

"She's all yours commander…"

Shepard quickly walked to the door, almost shaking to death from his nerves and a bit of excitement. The constant stream of crewmembers was still walking around the med-bay, but it appeared that the hive had calmed down. He saw Tali sitting at her bed, obviously tired with sweat still beaded on her brow. She looked at Shepard and gave him the best smile she could muster at that moment. The closer that Shepard walked towards her the more he caught sight of the ball wrapped in her hands. His heart raced as he walked up beside her and found the small sleeping child, resting on her mother's chest, tired like the rest of the people in the room.

Shepard crouched beside her as he looked into the smooth face of the baby girl in front of him. He felt the tears begin to take over and a sense of love begin to melt its way into his heart.

"What's her name?" Shepard asked.

Tali smiled and moved the blanket out of the way so she could see her face.

"Nadja'Zorah nar Normandy…"

"I like it…" Shepard put his arm around Tali and rested his head on her shoulder. Tali rested her head on his and smiled at the first ever hybrid protein species, a species that could be compatible with both proteins, another step into an evolutionary bond with the Dextro and Levin protein species of the galaxy.


	72. Chapter 72: Memories

That night, the galaxy felt quiet and serene to Shepard, a feeling that he had never felt before in his life. Was it the soundproof walls of the med-bay? Was it because he and Tali were the only ones in the room alongside their daughter? Shepard couldn't think of a reason why, but the absolute serenity felt unreal. He sat in the chair that Chakwas had graciously slid over for him so that he could sit by Tali's side that was now fast asleep, snoring softly. Shepard looked over at her soft face that glimmered softly in the light of the dim med-bay; a few strands of hair had fallen on her face. Shepard moved the short strands of hair away and watched her sleep, the baby resting softly upon her breast.

Shepard looked away from the serene image to look around the dim-lit room. Everything felt in order and calm. He felt that the chaos of the galaxy has ceased, the bitterness had stopped, and the prejudices forgotten. He went through the days, the months, which had led up to this point. The Council working with Aria who had named herself leader of the Terminus system though Shepard couldn't argue the influence she had over them. The geth and the quarians were now living in a symbiotic relationship, the relationship that they had strived for when they first created the geth. He looked at the mercenary bands that had destroyed so much and now they had united under the common banner of survival.

However, all this harmony would come at a price. The large sphere that held the harmonious beings of life that had unknowingly been manipulated to follow a technological evolution was now being pressed upon by an outside chaos, a chaos that could bring the galaxy to its knees before being executed. Shepard frowned at the thought of such a defeat, but…

Shepard looked over at the gentle life form resting upon her mother's chest. _There is always hope for a brighter future._ Shepard smiled weakly at his thoughts. He had lived his life in darkness for so long and now he was looking for a brighter future. Had this change been brought on by Tali? The baby? Or was this all a accumulation of events in his life to ready himself for the harshest of storms? _Do I deserve to escape the darkness?_

Silence in the room was his only answer. Then again he thought about the question. He wondered what someone of faith would do at this point. He had always held himself as an open-minded man who accepted no ideology as the truth, accepting the name of atheist when questioned, but he never was certain. He leaned back in his chair and thought about his life, reviewing every detail to try to see where all of this was leading him. The only answer that he could come up with was his death for the life of others, a sacrifice for the betterment of all life.

As much as he wanted to be sad about this idea, he couldn't bring himself to it. It made him feel mortal and alive.

"All great things must come to an end…" he whispered to himself.

Tali made a few cute noises as she shifted her weight in the bed and smacked her lips together though she did not wake up. Shepard leaned his head over the bed and rested it on Tali's chest beside the baby which he placed his arm around. He listened to Tali's powerful heartbeat, a heartbeat that had strengthened over the months leading up to this point, a heartbeat that beat with the power of Shepard's, a heartbeat that flowed with Shepard's. Shepard closed his eyes and listened to the tribal rhythm that their hearts produced. Shepard's was deep and slow while Tali's was lighter and faster though they shared equal strength. Shepard felt himself drift off to sleep.

_Shepard found himself standing in his house on Rannoch. He saw Tali sitting at the center table looking in his direction, but she wasn't looking at him but through him. He couldn't move his feet, but he could move his head. He discovered that he was standing in the doorway to the house; the bright, hot sun glaring behind him though no shadow was cast. A young quarian girl, maybe four years old ran around the corner. She squealed as she jumped into her mother's arms._

"_Nadja…" Shepard whispered._

_Tali tickled Nadja's stomach sending the girl into a laughing fit. Tali smiled as she quickly moved her fingers across the girl's belly, hitting every tickle nerve in her body. The girl screamed out with joy at the touches of her mother, trying to wrestle the hands away from her exposed stomach. Tali stopped and picked the girl up so that she was sitting on her lap._

"_When is Dad coming home?" the girl asked._

_Tali hesitated as the smile on her face quickly became strained. She looked at the doorway where Shepard was standing and shook her head._

"_I wouldn't be the one to tell you that…" Tali said, looking out the door at the bright outside._

_Shepard felt his muscles tense up at the change of the atmosphere in the room. He wanted to walk forwards and comfort her, to show her that he was there, but his body wouldn't budge. He watched as his family stood up and walked out of the room. He could feel the darkness beginning to encroach his dreams again. He pushed out on it, but it still pressed into him._

Shepard woke up with a start. He looked over to see Tali with her eyes sleepily opened, smiling at him.

"I hope you slept well Shepard." Tali said, smiling brilliantly.

Shepard rubbed his head and felt the imprint of the material on his face, smiling at her as he did so. Tali laughed at the marks that were on the right side of his face. Shepard leaned over to her, putting his face, inches from hers.

"What's so funny?"

Tali smiled at him. "You…" She pulled on the collar of his shirt bringing him in for a long kiss.

Shepard heard movement behind him and turned to see Thane sitting up, his shirt off revealing the patchwork of fusing his chest back together. He sad a few prayers as he took a deep breath in. He looked over at Shepard and Tali and at the baby in Tali's hands.

"My apologies… I didn't mean to intrude."

Shepard almost laughed. "Thane. You were here first so really we should be apologizing to you."

Thane bowed his head. "Apology accepted." Shepard almost laughed again.

Chakwas walked in the room. She walked straight over to Thane and examined the seals on his chest. She asked him general questions about his health, patted him on the shoulder, and helped him to his feet.

"Remember to get plenty of rest." Chakwas said.

Thane walked over to Tali and Shepard. He looked at the baby and at Shepard and Tali's hands that were laced lovingly together. The smile tat stretched across Thane's face could only be the smile of memory. He remembered his wife when Kolyat was born. He wasn't around much, but the happiness that he felt when he was with them was unmatched to anything that he had felt for most of his life. He bowed his head and turned around.

"Commander." Thane left the room.

The room became quiet again. Shepard stood up and flattened out his pajamas as though he had to look official for the crew. He leaned in one more time and kissed Tali, and he kissed the baby on her forehead.

"I need to make sure Joker hasn't destroyed the ship yet." Shepard said, walking towards the door.

"Keelah Se'lai, John."

"Keelah Se'lai, Tali." they both smiled.

Shepard left the room and made his way to his quarters so that he could get changed. His room was still in disarray after the night before, but he would have expected as much since if it were cleaned it would mean that someone would have been snooping. He rubbed the bridge of his nose as he walked over to his closet and pulled out his captain's gear. He even devoted some extra time to cleaning up the room to put his mind at ease. He picked up Tali's visor that she hadn't worn for almost three weeks now. He placed it on the table beside his bed and smiled. He looked down at his hand where the bond wrapping was still wrapped around though he had retied it to his wrist to make it more manageable.

He paused to reflect on his times with Tali. _Did I not go with Tali when I first met her so it wouldn't hurt her when I died?_ Shepard's mind began to ask the questions that he had tried to avoid, but now that he was asking them he found his mind being put at ease. He sighed as he picked up the blanket that was thrown on the ground. He picked it and remembered when he picked up the piece of fabric on the ground after the Engines had erupted. He walked over to his closet again and pulled out the robes that he had been given.

He felt the fabric before he slid it back into place. Memories appeared to take over his life for a second. Maybe he needed to see the amount of time that had passed to truly appreciate the present and to ready himself for the future, a future that he might not be a part of. He smoothed out his shirt and stood up strong and tall. He walked back to the elevator with his mind at ease from his past, his eyes set firmly on the future, a future that he was going to make safe for Tali and Nadja. If he was with them when the war was over didn't matter to him at this point.

* * *

Zaeed stood up from his broken desk and looked outside of his office window that had been broken by the flak. He put his fingers through the blinds and opened them to see that everyone was still working, many avoiding to look over at his office. Zaeed pulled his hand out of the blinds and wiped the blood off that had been splattered against the blinds from the 'dissenter'. He turned back to his prized shotgun and popped the thermal clip to replace it with a fresh one. He just cocked the gun loudly when another mercenary came up to his door that was now barely on its hinges due to the hole made by the blast.

"Uhm… Mr. Zaeed…" the man's voice shook.

"Just Zaeed…"

"Right. Zaeed. We just received another shipment of weapons and a notification of the assault ships that you had ordered."

"Good. Tell the men to get ready."

"Ready for what?"

"Ready to die. I'll give three years to come to terms with that reality."

The man began to shake. "What's going to happen in three years?"

Zaeed slowly turned to the man. "Hopefully nothing, but from what Shepard told me… That is when we are all either going to die or survive."

The man instantly lost all words. He began to shake even more which only annoyed Zaeed more. Zaeed turned the gun on the man who instantly jumped and began to shake even more.

"Tell them that they have three years to come to terms with dying. If they back down now then they are merely going to die in their homes in three years." Zaeed growled.

The man scurried out of the room like a rat and ran over to the group of mercenaries. Zaeed watched as the man tried to remain calm and say what Zaeed had told him to say, but he could still see that the man was shaking. Hopefully they could live through this. He found Shepard to have a far-reaching influence on the galaxy, but the only way that this galaxy is going to live was for everyone to come together because if there is any infighting the galaxy will be doomed.

Zaeed walked out of his office and looked around at all of the individuals in the room. He didn't say a word nor did he make eye contact with any of them.

"You better know what you are doing Shepard…"

* * *

Tali was sleeping again with the baby on her chest. No one was allowed to enter on Chakwas's orders. Chakwas even went to the length of setting up a chair outside of the room to make sure no one entered. Meanwhile the dark figure loomed over Tali's bed. The flowing, broken, brown cloak blowing in a nonexistent wind. He walked over to the side of the bed that the baby was sleeping on and bent down close to it.

"Fascinating…" the Shadow Broker whispered.

He stood up again and held out his hand. A strange object materialized in it. He looked the object over and, seeing that everything was in order, placed it on the baby. He watched as they both slept, the epitome of organic serenity.

"Maybe there is hope… hopefully this will be helpful when the time is right." The Shadow Broker fazed out of existence causing Tali to stir only slightly.

Chakwas walked into the room causing Tali to jump awake, started by the noise in the room. Chakwas almost jumped to.

"I'm sorry for disturbing you Tali." Chakwas said.

"It's fine…" She rocked the baby who had woken up, but not cried. She looked down at the baby to coo at it, but she slowly stopped rocking it when she noticed the strange object sitting on the baby.

"Who was in the room?" Tali asked, staring at the object.

"I didn't let anyone enter the room." Chakwas said, making her way over to the confused Tali. She stared at the object and looked around the room.

Tali picked up the device and spun it in her hands trying to figure out what it was. She caught an engraving on one side with two letters on it.

"SB"


	73. Chapter 73: The New Blood

Shepard quickly ran down to the med-bay upon request from Chakwas. He ran into the door way and quickly looked around the room to find anything dangerous or out of place, but instead he found Tali staring at him, slightly confused.

"What's wrong?"

"It appears that somebody wanted to give your baby a small present, Commander. Probably somebody with the initials 'SB'." Chakwas held the strange object out to him.

He slowly took it and spun it in his fingers gingerly. Sure enough he found the intricate designs of the letters etched into the side. He looked around the room as though he was still watching him, but he knew that he wouldn't show himself. He turned the object around again, but there was no indication how to even do anything with it if it was even possible to do anything. Shepard hurriedly turned back to the door and quickly left with the object in hand. He could hear Tali call after him, but he couldn't respond not now.

Shepard walked in his room angrily. He set the object on the bed and stared at it. He knew that this wasn't what it appeared to be as was everything else the Shadow Broker did. He pulled over a chair and sat in it, keeping his eye on the object just to make sure it didn't do anything. Shepard tried to see the world through the Broker's eyes, but the object held no significance.

"What do you do?" Shepard buried his head in his arms that he rested on the back of the chair that was in front of him.

"Talking to inanimate objects? Your crazier than I thought…"

Shepard quickly turned to see the dark cloaked figure sitting on his couch. He stared at the one thing that probably made him question the most in the world, the only thing that never made any sense, the epitome of chaos.

"What is it?" Shepard asked bluntly, wanting answers not riddles.

"You'll find out… later… after the war."

"Why would I even trust you giving some unknown… thing to my child, my newborn daughter?" Shepard asked angrily. The Shadow Broker appeared hurt.

"Shepard? I thought we were friends. I mean when have I ever hurt you?" Shepard stared at him. "That was for you to accept the weight of your mission. You know that."

"How do I know this isn't another test, another experiment. 'I've put a bomb on your wife and kid. You have five minutes to save them.' I'm done with your tests."

"No more tests Shepard… This is from what you would call my heart… but you know that I don't have one, but it is merely a figure of speech."

"So what does it do?"

"You will find out later, after the war."

"What if I'm not around after the war?"

"I like your acceptance of death, but you had better not brood on your death. If you die that device will make your family safe. If you live then you can see what it does… Deal?"

Shepard glared at the mysterious shadow that always appeared to follow him. Every time that his life became the brightest the more noticeable the shadow that his body cast would become. He shook his head and sighed.

"If this does anything to them, I will kill you…" Shepard said.

"That's the spirit! Let me see that survival instinct kick! Show me that you are alive!"

Shepard was standing and throwing the chair faster than any human with reactions could react to the attack. The chair hit the couch, but hit nothing because there was no one in the room. She breathed out the frustration of the Shadow Broker messing with his life again, but he would try this, for now. He still maintained his acceptance of the chance that he might die in the coming battle, but he would do everything in his power to survival knowing that the only thing that he could give to his family was himself. Shepard laughed as it clicked in his head that the Shadow Broker had once again broke the darkness around him.

"I'll give you a chance…" Shepard smiled and he could have sworn that he heard a quiet laughter filling the room.

He grabbed the object and returned to the med-bay. When he walked in, he found Tali struggling with Chakwas to stand up.

"… No I have to see him. Something is wro-" She stopped fighting when Shepard walked back into the room with the object, looking far happier.

"Keep this safe." He handed the object to Tali and gave her a quick kiss, which she accepted though she was still thoroughly confused. "I hope to see you better and able to move around soon." Shepard left Tali, happy though confused, in the room so that she could get the proper amount of rest. Shepard decided to take a small walk around the ship to make sure that everyone was in good condition and if anything could be improved upon.

Tali sat on her bed and looked at Chakwas for some answer to Shepard's madness, but she shook her head. Tali's head quickly began to spin from sitting upright so she laid back on her pillow though she was thoroughly sick of laying down. She almost jumped when the door opened again with the scientist salarian making his way to her.

"Tried to sleep. Impossible with such a breakthrough on board. request skin sample for study. Only slim chance child could be as perfect as it is though protein chirality would dictate otherwise." his Omni-tool was already open when he made it to the bed.

"Will it hurt her?" Tali asked.

"No pain. Completely safe though discomfort may be an issue, but nothing that you can't handle."

"As long as it doesn't hurt her…" Mordin reached over and passed the Omni-tool over the babies arm. The baby squirmed slightly, but nothing that Tali couldn't handle.

"Excellent. Be first to tell of results. Fascinating." Mordin left with his Omni-tool almost spinning on his arm as he already started tests on the sample.

Mordin unconsciously walked back to his lab, constantly fumbling around with his Omni-tool, his eyes widening every few seconds. Once in his lab he injected the sample into the experiment Petri dishes that he had already laid out. He looked carefully at each sample through microscopes and scans; he ran experiments, and put the cells under different environmental and biological strains. His most startling find was the harmonious interaction of the chiral protein strands with the DNA.

What was previously thought impossible was now sitting in front of Mordin like a new internal body scanner. He knew of the neutralizing qualities that the bacteria in the Pragia water supply had supplied for this baby to be born, but this appeared to be completely different from simply nullifying qualities. The DNA strand appeared to take in both proteins equally with no side effects. Test after test resulted in the same outcome of a harmonious acceptance of chirality.

"Impossible…"

Mordin began to add in diseases to the dish to see how the cells reacted. He found that only a few cells were affected by the disease, and upon closer investigation, he found that the cells had their own defensive system against disease though it was only a weak defense. The most upsetting discovery that Mordin found was that the baby was going to be susceptible to both strands of diseases, both Dextro- and Levin- protein.

The three data pads that Mordin had set out to document the event were filled faster than any other experiment that he had run. Everything about these cells defied the known biology of life, but somehow they existed. Mordin pulled another data pad as he began to furiously type another chapter to his studies.

Meanwhile, Shepard walked through the engineering deck to make sure that the loss of Tali to the team wasn't dragging them down. Surprisingly, he found Eric holding his own though he did appear strained.

"Do you need help?" Shepard asked.

"Wha-? No. I'm fine. Tali told me I need to push myself to break the boundaries of reaction speed."

"How's it going?"

Eric looked away from the readouts, but his hands still moved through every step with perfect timing. "I think she is going to be happy with my progress…"

"I'm happy with your progress…" Shepard nodded.

While Shepard was leaving the Engineering deck, he ran into Jack who had a bloody lip. Shepard didn't even ask. He walked over to the window and looked down into the cargo bay where a tired Grunt sat with a cut on his cheek. Shepard shook his head and left Grunt to wallow in defeat.

* * *

Kal sat at the mess hall table with Natalie sitting close to him, smiling. They both looked through the open window of the med-bay where Tali and the baby slept.

"I didn't think it was possible for aliens to conceive…" Natalie said watching the gentle scene in the med-bay.

"It is…" Kal said. "But it appears they found a way around it."

"Do you think we can?"

"I doubt it. I think we are better off adopting."

"Can we still…?"

Kal looked at her curiously as she smiled widely. "Tali gave me her notes and dosage limits along with some herbal advice to bolster my immune system enough so we could though my body is going to have a different reaction than hers to the strain of being outside of my suit."

Natalie nodded thoughtfully as she pulled the steaming cup of coffee closer to her. She gently pushed her hair back before she took a sip of the dark, rich liquid. Kal watched her drink and wished that he could join her, but he knew his limits, they both knew his limits, yet Natalie stayed with him. Was this what love was? Was it never letting go of the person that truly mattered in your life even if they could never give you everything that you would want? Kal was only happy that after nine months of dating and holding her that she was the one for him.

Natalie stood up walked back over to the kitchen to start preparing lunch for the crew. Kal watched her begin cutting and mixing various ingredients together and mixing them into a pot. He also watched as she pulled out a tube of nutrient paste just for him. Kal felt out of place when he saw that. He knew that Tali could now manage the food that everyone else ate along with the strange meals that they gave to Garrus, which he wished he could eat, but the thick shield in front of his face would deny any fork or spoon from making it to his mouth.

"Keelah Se'lai Natalie." Kal said, taking his leave.

"Keelah Se'lai Kal'Reegar." Natalie said with a large smile on her face. She even blew him a kiss. Kal stretched his arms and strolled back to his place in the armory with Jacob.

* * *

Krog flipped through the channels of the Illium Network, but after the third beauty and cosmetic commercial that used krogan's as the before images and asari as the after images bugged him, he decided to watch the serene black screen when he turned the network off. He stared at the reflection of himself in the blackness, such a fitting metaphor. He decided to take a walk to brush off his restlessness. He chose the alleyway that he and Liara had walked the night before, the night that Krog had made a new friend. He walked over to the trash can that he had broke the man into, but was surprised to find nothing in it.

He looked around the alley for some sign of the body, but he found nothing. He shrugged and kept his pace as he scanned the alleyway for new friends to play with, but most avoided him. He walked down another dark alley, but again, no fun could be found. He rounded another corner and collided with a rather excited salarian.

"Oh! Oh. Sorry sir. I didn't see you there."

"What's your name salarian?" Krog growled.

"Pip. Why do you need to know my name?"

"So that I can tell the police the name of the faceless, skinless corps laying in one of the dark alleyways!"

Pip slowly backed up, but Krog followed him at the same pace. Pip's heart raced as he tried to think of a way out from his skinless fate, but his body was telling him to run. He turned quickly and started to run, but he was violently jerked back by his collar. He fell to the ground and whimpered at Krog's feet, pleading for his life. Krog couldn't stand the salarian's broken and high pitched voice pleading for his life. He lifted the salarian up by his neck to silence him and he was about to smash his face in when a loud voice behind him caused him to stop.

"Stop! Do you want to get yourself killed?" Krog looked over his shoulder to see another salarian standing there.

"I would like to see you try…" Krog turned back to the helpless salarian who was still squirming in his hands.

"It wouldn't be me that would kill you. It would be the Broker." The salarian's voice became broken even at the mention of the name.

Krog's muscles tensed up and he slowly lowered the gagging salarian and turned back to the other. "What did you say?"

"He is an agent for the Shadow Broker." the salarian looked around nervously.

Krog stared at the salarian and the one gagging behind him. This wasn't worth the risk. He decided to just leave them be and return to his apartment to find something to eat. He was sick of being on a diet.


	74. Chapter 74: Safety of Promises

The galaxy had gone quiet. Every planet was meticulously planning and building ship after ship to help in the aid of an impending attack from a menace that not many had heard of until recently. This gray area of not knowing exactly what they were facing along with the fact that many of the previous claims that people had heard and had accepted as truth was now crushed in front of them while their leaders told them otherwise. Some began to become skeptic on this whole Reaper invasion plot that even their leaders had a hard time saying, but they couldn't complain that war time preparation, though war itself wasn't so, appeared to boost profits and bring a common unity in the galaxy.

The only thing that everyone began to question and begin to become leery of was the geth and quarian treaty. A treaty that had raised the quarian people to the fighting power of the turian fleet almost overnight. Some of the turians cross at being rivaled by an almost unknown race, found this new rise in power almost revitalizing after fighting the same enemies day in and day out. For the most part, the increased military production and military stationing only made people at ease. From the constant infighting and the constant raids, people saw this increase in presence as a gift, a gift that they would have wanted a year ago.

Through all of this military upgrades and building advances the Normandy still maintained its rank as the most advanced warship, though its practicality in a full frontal fleet assault was weak it still could hold its own against the slow moving battleships and frigates.

Shepard looked through the updates of the military production of the surrounding races. He found the production needed, but he always felt that the numbers and loyalty of the rival races would get in the way of success. He even thought about the fact that three years would not be a reasonable amount of time to create a fleet large enough to fight the Reapers… yet he had hope in its success. He had reviewed the statistics and looked over the data he had over Sovereign. It had taken a fleet to take only one Reaper down; taking down an entire fleet would be near impossible.

Through nights of rubbing his head and crumpling pieces of paper, Shepard found no answer as to how they could punch through the Reaper's shields so that they could get an upper hand. He asked Mordin to work on the situation, but having no Reaper to study and no technology to analyze, the chances of finding something that would work one hundred percent was impossible. Shepard walked into the meeting room and activated the table in front of him. It slid down into the floor allowing Shepard to activate the holographic message center.

The Illusive Man was still sitting in his chair looking at the brilliant glow of the star that hovered in his room. The tiny glow of the cigarette flew out and down, smashing pitifully into a tray.

"Coming back to plead Shepard?" The Illusive Man lifted a new cigarette up to his mouth and lit it.

"I came back to ask for your help."

"Why should I help you when you won't help me get what I want?"

"I can get you what you want if you give me the resources I need."

"I'm guessing you want all the data I have on Reaper technology? You better make good use of it…"

The image around Shepard broke apart into the conference room. He stood waiting for a confirmation from EDI, which came seconds later. He quickly transferred all the data over to Mordin and walked out the door, almost running into Kal who had been standing outside of the room waiting for him.

"Shepard. I wanted to ask you something."

"And what might that be?" Shepard said lifting the data pad to review the same material that he had given Mordin. Kal spoke quickly and loudly enough to cause Shepard to stop short of the automatic door sensors.

"How did you and Tali do it?" Kal kept his body rigid though Shepard could tell that he was slightly shaking.

Shepard looked at the data pad for a few seconds before he turned it off and walked over to Kal. He placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder and smiled.

"Time, trust, acceptance, and a little bit of hope."

Kal stood slightly and took in the words that Shepard had given him. He knew they were true, but he was hoping for something more, something a bit more concrete, but he could accept this answer, for now. He nodded and walked out the door to the armory with Shepard following close behind. Kal walked over to the table of guns and picked up one that he hadn't touched or calibrated that day as he listened to Shepard's footsteps pass behind, and the sound of the door hissing open.

Shepard walked into the main room of the CIC to see Tali standing at his personal computer. He walked over to her and looked over her shoulder to see that she was trying to transfer something from it.

"Tali?" Tali almost jumped out of her robes when she heard his voice. She quickly closed the transfer program and turned to him, her back hiding the screen of the computer.

"Shepard? What can I do for you?"

"Why were you messing with my computer?"

"I was sending a message to Shala, telling her of our arrival to Rannoch."

Shepard nodded and smiled at her. She must be hiding something important if she could lie that good to him.

"Can you go tell Kal to go see Mordin about his immunization shot before he steps on Rannoch? My hands are full." _Two can play at this game_.

"Of course Shepard…" She rubbed her hands together nervously along with a few wipes of her face. She walked back to the armory to tell Kal while Shepard flipped open the transfer programs and data streams that Tali was trying to move and encrypt. He found that they were old logs that she had made. Shepard stared at the files curiously, but he couldn't bring himself to read any of them. He looked around the CIC and reactivated the transfer.

"She'll tell me when she's ready."

Shepard walked around the CIC keeping his eye on the performance of his crew which he had found was optimal and up to spec with only a few glitches and mistakes being made, but nothing that would risk the Normandy's health. He made his way to the cockpit where Joker adjusted the occasional headings and applied different thrusts of power to the engine to maintain a safe speed.

The mass relay loomed in front of them, but the sudden jolt and flash in front of them caused the relay to disappear and a new constellation of stars to materialize. Shepard caught sight of the distant shimmer of their destination, Rannoch. The quarian people had only arrived at the planet a few months ago, but they had already regenerated much of their civilization on the surface though they still had to wear their suits. The large fleet of ships now orbited the large orange star. Geth platforms and stations littered the area. Their function, however, was lost under their current use of remaking and upgrading the ships of the quarian fleet into battle cruisers, frigates, battleships, and fighters. While the geth rebuilt the quarian fleet, the quarians rebuilt their civilization.

Large areas of the planet were now inhabited by quarians. Most were centered on the large Liveships that had been landed and converted into gardens to spread their seeds and food bearing plants to the surrounding area. A few buildings had started to be constructed on the backs of the Liveships, but in terms of residences, many had created tents or impromptu lean-tos which many preferred living in then on the ships. Shepard's shuttle landed on the edge of the colony.

Kal'Reegar walked out with Natalie's arm wrapped in his arm. He shielded his eyes from the magnificent orange glow of their star. He paused only a few feet out of the shuttle, as he looked around at everything, the dirt, the plant life, the wildlife, his home. War vanished from his body as he felt the warmth of being where he was meant to be. Shepard walked past him and smiled while making a charade for him to remove his mask.

Though shaky at first, Kal managed to decompress the visor around his face letting in the warm air of the planet fall in on him. He took a deep breath of the surrounding air, taking in the fragrances of everything around him. For being a hardened marine, it was surprising to see the emotional break down as Kal smiled and the tears began to flow from his eyes that had, for the first time in their lives, seen real light and beauty. He fell to his knees and felt the dirt on the ground, softly grabbing up handfuls and touching it to his face.

Natalie looked around at the sensational glow that the star had brought onto the planet. She too shielded her eyes from the hot glow of the sun, but she eventually felt her hand fall as the beauty of the landscape began to seep into her body. It was almost like an untouched Earth, yet at the same time it wasn't. She had found the heat unbearable at first, but now she found it to be warming her very soul. She had always wished to see another planet, but to see a planet that had been denied to the man she loved, brought a tear to her eye.

One of the quarians began to make their way towards the visitors to their planet. Shala bowed politely when she had walked up to talking distance of the visitors. She walked over to Shepard and hugged him lightly.

"Thank you Shepard…" She whispered in his ear before she turned her attention to Kal, giving him an equally appropriate hug.

Tali walked out of the ship with the baby-sitting in the carrier on her back. She walked out of the shuttle and caught sight of Shala amidst the crowd of friends. She waved her hand and made her way to Shala who waited at the edge of the group. She squeezed Shala with a slightly stronger hug that Shala had given to the others. Shala came face to face with the next Zorah as she was held. She was speechless at first, seeing a quarian baby not in a suit or sterile chamber, but the more she looked at the sleeping baby, the more she realized how un-quarian it was, but that still held its own shock value.

"Tali. It is good to see you again, and I see that you have brought a little one here." Shala said, with a hint of confusion in her voice implying for Tali to explain.

Tali didn't want to explain as those months of guilt came back to her, how she had bent the rules of adapting and possible to share something more with Shepard than simple touches which she could have lived with, but opportunity showed its face. She gave a weak smile and cleared her throat to explain, but was interrupted when the old Admiralty Board, now Quarian Council, greeted the crew.

"Normandy crew! It is a pleasure and an honor to have you stop by to see our progress." Zaal'Koris said loudly over the noise of working quarians.

"I wanted to see how things were coming and give Kal'Reegar a chance to see his homeworld again." Shepard explained stepping forward from the group.

"Is that the only reason for your visit?" Zaal asked.

"How is the progress with converting the fleet?" Shepard asked looking up to the sky as if he could see them.

"That would be in the jurisdiction of the geth. You would have to talk to them." Han'Gerral spoke up.

Shepard hummed knowingly and nodded a few times before he turned to Tali and had her step forwards. A few of the quarians who had stopped to watch the proceedings of the visitors and the QC gasped in amazement at seeing Tali unmasked and suitless for that matter though she wore her robes which she had modified to cover more of her body. She reached behind her and pulled the baby out from the carrier and held it in front of her, glad that Shepard would be explaining this news. Some of the quarians stared at the baby in amazement next, not that it was living outside, but the human qualities evident in her body structure.

"That's impossible…" Daro'Xen said, almost in a whisper.

"My team has found a way to speed the immuno-adaptation process and boost it to allow quarians to survive in other environments… like the Citadel."

"You mean…?" Shala started.

"The quarian people have been given an embassy on the Citadel. They see that the large fleet that you hold to be a good reason to keep your people in touch, especially for the coming war that I hope that you still remember."

"We still remember Shepard… We wish it weren't true, but we will give everything for this galaxy even though they gave us nothing…" Han'Gerral said adamantly.

"That's good to hear." Shepard bowed his head.

"We had almost turned our backs on the galaxy until you showed us that some people out there still cared for us." Shala bowed her head.

Shepard bowed his head and took Tali in his one arm.

"Shala?" Tali asked, slightly unnerved.

"Yes Tali?"

"We would also like a favor…"

Shala looked between Shepard and Tali. "We would be happy to provide anything for you."

Tali stared at Shala with slightly hurt and nervous eyes as she bounced the baby a little. "We need you to take care of her… We can't… we can't have her on the Normandy. It's too dangerous for her."

Shala looked at the baby and lost herself in her memories of when she had been given Tali when Rael couldn't take care of her. She knew how hard it was for them to ask her and she knew how hard it would be for them to leave this planet if they were going to leave the bay here. She stretched out her hands and took the baby and cradled it in her arms.

"Please promise me that you and Shepard will return Tali. Just give me that promise because I couldn't live with this again if this turns out bad."

Tali had quickly misted with tears and was shaking from being upset. She wasn't a fan of abandoning Nadja on a planet and leaving, then again, neither was Shepard who painfully watched the exchange.

"I promise Shala…" Tali said giving Shala another hug and kissing Nadja on the forehead.

"What is the little one's name?" Shala asked, trying to void the emotion out of her voice, but that was unbearably painful.

"Nadja'Zorah nar Normandy."

"I will tell Nadja everything. Don't worry Tali'Zorah, she is among family." Shala smiled under her visor.

Tali wiped the tear that had wanted to run from her eyes and smiled. "That is want I wanted to hear…" Tali tried to laugh, but it still looked like she was crying. Tali reached into one of her pockets and pulled out the strange object with "SB" written on it. "Give this to her."

"What is it?"

"She'll find out later in her life, hopefully we will be around when she figures it out." Tali tried to smile again, but it kept shrinking back to her frown. She wrapped the object back into the baby's wrap and turned away from her, trying to breath as the sadness began to choke her up.

Shepard wrapped his arms around Tali and tried to comfort her, but he found himself trying to comfort himself.

"Don't worry Tali… We will be back."

"I hope we will John… I couldn't live if I didn't." Tali tried to laugh, but again it was broken and short lived.

They made their way back to the shuttle to bolster their emotions from the driving storm that was fast approaching, a pulsing darkness that threatened everything in its wake, a threat that was ahead of schedule.


	75. Chapter 75: The Price of Safety

While Shepard and Tali took a more mournful walk around the shuttle, Kal and Natalie who had been blissfully unaware of the potential sacrifice that they had committed, walked around Rannoch excitedly. Kal would stop every once and awhile and look at the scenery which he found he was as foreign to this planet as Natalie was, both seeing it for the first time. The scenery glistened in the hot sun and flowed with the soft winds that blew over the plains and hills. The most breathtaking freedom of the planet appeared to call to the quarians. Even though many had been there for months, a few still would look out at the plains and pause in their work.

Kal'Reegar tried to find some way of giving Natalie a tour of Rannoch, but he himself had never been on the planet until now and was most likely as lost as her. He looked around for anything interesting, but the sounds of construction and dust was all he found in the colony. He looked out at the rolling hills and decided that a scenic walk would benefit both of them. He edged her over and pointed at the slopes around them. Natalie laughed and followed him with her smile brilliantly shining in the orange, ambient glow.

Kal'Reegar stepped on the sloping banks and felt the soil slide under him as he walked, but it only appeared to greet his feet and hold him to the hill like the planet wanted to stay. They made the climb up the hill and looked out over the other rolling hills that appeared to be nicely browned by the sun. Kal couldn't hold back the smiles and laughs. He had never said the word before, not how he was going to use it now.

"Home…" Kal whispered to himself, again, a new feeling jolted through his body, a mixture of excitement and warmth.

He and Natalie turned around on the hill and looked at the colony before them. The full scope and the sight of the other two Liveships could be seen over the hills with camps spread around them. A whole civilization camping on their homeworld almost made Kal laugh. It wasn't much, but it would have to do for now. A natural instinct caused his muscles to tense when a geth dropship flew over and landed at the makeshift landing area.

He knew they were friendly, but old habits die hard. He watched as a group of unarmed geth walked out and greeted Shala with friendly bows and hugs though this was only a formality to the geth and held no emotion.

"Is that the geth?" Natalie asked, who had only been graced with seeing Legion only a few times.

"Yes…"

The wind blew through the hills and caused Natalie's hair to blow in her face. She looked over at Kal and grabbed his arm. "They're here to help…" Natalie spoke Kal's mind.

"It's just hard to see them as friends when you were trained your entire life to kill them…"

"Start anew then."

Kal thought about it and nodded. He gave Natalie a disarming smile as they made their way back down the hill to the colony. It would only be a matter of time before their homeworld would be back to fighting strength since much of their architecture and building ideas were lost those years ago. A new architectural culture with the same traditions… it could work.

Shepard and Tali were still pacing around the shuttle muttering things to each other that could only be reassurances and promises. When Natalie and Kal'Reegar walked up to them, they stopped and smiled.

"Ready to go?" Shepard asked, pointing at the open door of the shuttle.

Kal nodded and they made their way back onto the shuttle. The shuttle's engines fired up and the shuttle rose away from the planet's surface. Shala stood in the dust holding the baby that Shepard and Tali had painfully given her and waved them on their departure.

Though they had given their child to Shala, they knew it was the best move to keep her safe. They tried to look at it positively, but the odds of survival were dismal at this point. The idea of every quarian being a family began to put their mind at ease, but the idea of them dying and the baby being raised by others made them feel heartless and irresponsible.

Shepard sent the Normandy on surveillance missions around the edge of the galaxy to make sure that nothing transpired ahead of schedule. The Normandy crew kept their own steadfastness, but Shepard and Tali were plagued with a cloud of depression and doubt for what they did.

"How could we have just left her there?" Tali asked.

"It was the best thing we could have done…" Shepard said solemnly.

"How could that be the best? We abandoned her in the arms of someone else so we could go back to our lives without her around! How is that 'the best'?" Tali asked angrily.

"We are fighting for her safety. Even if we die, the galaxy may defeat the Reapers, and we have kept her safe…" Shepard said trying to fight back the wall of depression that was slowly pushing him to the edge of the pit of darkness.

"It still doesn't feel right… Bosh'tet." Tali stood up and looked into the fish tank to hide the overwhelming emotion that was sweeping across her face, a few tears dropped to the ground as she took in a deep breath to comfort her nerves.

Shepard watched her silently. He bowed his head and sighed as he rose up and walked over to Tali. Tali watched Shepard's reflection come into view on the glass. She tried to collect her feelings and stop herself from crying, but the more she looked at Shepard and the more she tried to hide her feelings the more her feelings began to intensify. By the time Shepard had made it to her, wrapping his arms around her waist and swaying her back and forth, she had all but broke apart.

"Damn it. Damn it. Shepard." Tali broke down crying. "How could we do that? She's our daughter and I just threw her into Shala's arms like I didn't care. Damn it!" Tali turned in Shepard's arms and cried on his chest, trying to bury her face from everything around her.

Shepard tried to comfort her, but Tali's break down was enough to cause his dam to begin to buckle under the pressure. He felt a tear fall from his eye as he tried to muster enough courage and strength to talk calmly to her, to try to say comforting words, but he was unable to bolster his nerves enough.

"It's okay Tali…" Shepard managed before his voice cracked up from his own regret.

They stood in the room, swaying and trying to take command of their feelings, but both were fighting a battle that could only be won through time. The only sounds in the room was Tali's muffled sobs and Shepard's deep breathing as he tried to keep himself strong.

Tali slowly pulled herself away from Shepard, wiping the tears out of her eyes and trying to breath normally. She looked at Shepard, a broken mother whose own guilt was causing her life to fall apart.

"What should we do?" Tali asked.

"Live and keep her safe… We have to."

Tali hugged him again though she wasn't crying as hard. "We have to…" Tali reiterated.

* * *

Krog looked out over the Illium cityscape, the towering skyscrapers blocking his view of the ocean, but he could care less. He looked back at the bed where he had laid out his guns and armor, cleaning and repairing each piece. He had checked everything over multiple times and felt that he was ready, the shower was still on. He looked over at the bathroom where a wall of steam was falling out of and back at the armor and guns. He had to do this and he felt no remorse for doing it.

Liara walked out of the shower, cleaning her ears with the towel. "Krog?"

The room was empty, and the bed was made. She walked over and picked up a piece of paper that was laying on the bed. She quickly read the note over and re-read it again just to make sure the message was clear. She sat down on the bed, still holding the paper though it had fallen limply to her side. She looked out the window to see the glow of Illium greeting her. She looked down at the message again.

"I can't promise you that I will return, but remember this, my love for you will always burn."

Liara didn't know whether to laugh at Krog's attempt at poetry or to cry for him leaving her. She looked out the window again as if she was going to see him fly by the window, give her one last glimpse of his face. She waited at the window, not even getting dressed, for any sign of him, but nothing came up. The longer she waited the more her heart began to flutter and the more her eyes threatened to tear up. She breathed in the mucus that had began to thicken in her nose as her eyes fell to the floor. She dropped the message and walked back to the bathroom to grab her clothes.

She walked out fully dressed and completely calm. She stared at the window angrily and walked out the door to the apartment. Walking down the hallway to the elevator, no one would even be able to tell that she was upset with the image that she had painted on her face. She stepped into the elevator with her arms folded, serene on the outside, but burning bitter on the inside. She would not be abandoned like this.

She summoned her shuttle and immediately made her way to the docking bay. She filed through the rows of stored ships and found the one she was looking for. She stepped inside and started the engines and hacked the docking information to see that Krog had left the station twenty minutes ago. The engines roared to life and she shot herself out to the point on her tracking device that she had lifted off of Krog.

* * *

In an unknown part of the galaxy, a song that life had never heard was being sung loudly. The pulsing ground and the sound of running feet filled the air of the planet, but there was nothing visible on the surface. The pebbles on the surface began to shake and jump as the ground began to rumble. The ground burst open sending forth a wave of insect like creatures, the Rachni. The legions of Rachni made a large circle around the hole that they made, their antennae pulsing and moving in rhythmic patterns. From the hole rose a large Rachni, almost gracefully causing the dust to settle.

The Rachni looked up into space, their mandibles moving as they did so. One lone human-like figure emerged beside the Rachni Queen. She looked up at the stars and smiled.

"We are ready Shepard." the Asari woman said. Her eyes flipped white instantly. "All of us are ready…" Her eyes returned. The antennae stopped moving and they made their way back into the earth.

* * *

Shepard sat at his computer without a spark of happiness or motivation.

"Commander? We are receiving a message from… umm… somewhere."

"Patch it in Joker…" he said half-heartedly.

"We are ready Shepard… All of us are ready…" came the familiar voice of the Asari messenger.

The message livened Shepard up a bit, but the weight of his decision on Rannoch was still tearing him down. He knew it was the most logical thing to do but… It never felt right with him. Nothing did. Not this early, but he felt that it would be better to preserve as many lives as he could and not risk innocence but… it still felt wrong. The decision was hard and he thought after he made it, it would get easier, but it was getting harder. He used the overwhelming grief and regret to fuel his survival.

"I will return. I will fix my mistakes…" Shepard said out loud, but then he dropped it to a whisper. "I promise…"

The ship glided through the darkness of space with ease, the engines slowly puttering to keep the ship in a slight spin so that each side of the ship wouldn't overheat. The glowing star behind them promised them of light and hoped, but the overwhelming darkness surrounding them reminded them of the struggle for the light to be seen and for the light to break through. It was their mission and their galaxy to save. They would not back down and they would never give up until they died fighting.


	76. Chapter 76: Confidence in Regret

The despair that had slowly worked its way into Shepard and Tali's bones, slowly became a normal feeling. They didn't feel any better about their decision, but they were managing to cope with it better. Shepard had spent almost every waking moment of his life looking over every possible way of improving their chances at survival, but there wasn't much more he could do except wait and hope that the galaxy around him would be able to rise to the occasion.

The Citadel had promised him a fleet and they had slowly begun to work on it with the help of Aria who had taken the reins as the spokeswoman and leader of the Terminus Systems which made no object of it out of fear or respect, Shepard wasn't sure. The fleet slowly had taken shape of the few months, but the shape was only a large set of chassis's and outlines for the boost in power of the Citadel fleet. Aria had gathered most of her forces which were more far-reaching than any one would have expected.

Zaeed had sent a conformation message to Shepard confirming his mercenary groups had been informed of their role in the battle and that only a small amount of his follows had dropped out, out of fear. Shepard received word from the geth who had taken the liberty of upgrading every one if the quarian's ships with boosted weapons and speed capabilities. Also, the addition of the Rachni who had promised their readiness to Shepard was a nice surprise for Shepard to hear.

Tali had retaken her role as the engineering officer, speeding up Eric's already top notch performance. She had told Shepard that if she had to give up one of her babies that she wouldn't neglect the other. This gave Tali and Shepard a short uneasy laugh, but a rare laugh, nonetheless. Emotions eventually improved as the days started to go by and the emotional wounds began to heal though not completely.

Shepard had taken the time to dock the ship in multiple locations to upgrade the ship further with the most recent of technology, all of which, the Illusive Man had bought and readied before Shepard docked there. As much as Shepard despised working for Cerberus, he knew that the time of distrust and grudges had to end and for a strong unity to be made from the previous chaos. Shepard ate the small group of French fries that Gardner and Natalie had saved for him in an attempt to cheer him up, happily it worked, but Shepard still felt the underlying hurt.

The Normandy had a new second layer shield system that fortified the upper layer with an ionic boost caused from the two ion fields running in opposite directions. A softer layer of armor was placed over the other break away armor pieces allowing a larger window of opportunity if a Reaper's ion beam happened to graze them. The new Reaper information that the Illusive man and the Shadow Broker had gathered was processed through the Normandy's computers, allowing EDI to make suggestions of how to further boost the likelihood of survival of a ship against the Reapers. Shepard disseminated the information across the different unified factions of the galaxy.

The Citadel had also informed Shepard that they would be taking command of the troops and fleet that they were building and requested that Shepard pass a message to the quarian people asking for their fleet joining under their command. The message wasn't received so pleasantly by the quarian people who found the Citadel's sudden interest at commanding them a degrading move on their part since the Citadel provided no assistance for them after their exile from their homeworld. Part of the Quarian Council was sent to the Citadel to 'express' their grievance of the issue which sparked a long political debate.

Shepard rubbed his temples at the debate and gave his own words calling the command of the troops to be given to a network of the captain's of each vessel instead of one central core claiming that the enveloping attack would become too complicated and chaotic that a central body wouldn't be able to command all of the troops efficiently. The quarian's accepted Shepard's plan without question, but the Citadel looked at the decision as a way of allowing desertion and confusing, claiming that a network of captains would cause an inaudible mass of yelling and distress calls that wouldn't allow for a sufficient understanding of the assault at hand.

Shepard rubbed his head at the further arguments of his choice when an idea that he knew wouldn't click with the Citadel and cause the quarians to even question him, but he knew that it was the only logical way to create the network he had in mind.

"What if you placed a geth platform as the coordinating factor on each key ship in the fleets allowing an instantaneous communication between their already sophisticated network."

Both Councils remained silent as they thought of the repercussions that such an action would have if the geth were controlled by the Reapers. The quarians, as much as they trusted the geth now, was not enough to drive their previous ill feelings to cause them to accept the plan fully, but they gave Shepard a positive vote saying it was the best option to take. The Council remained bitter as they allowed the plan to take affect and for geth to land at the Citadel to take their positions on each of the ships that would act as the relays between the network of vessels that would be spread over the galaxy.

Shepard nodded and found the only flaw of the plan to be the fact that the geth could be controlled by the Reapers, but after a small talk with Legion about the likelihood of such a thing happening, Legion said that the odds of the Reapers infiltrating their network would have a 27% chance at succeeding which Shepard found to be high, but a risk that had to be taken to allow the coordination of the entire galactic fleet.

Tali also had her own bitter opinion about the decision of spreading the geth to every key vessel in the fleet with the same worries that the quarians had expressed at the meeting. Shepard explained everything to her, but she remained leery of the geth's actions now that they were spread over the galaxy in vessels that could easily cause some damage and jeopardize the survival of the galaxy.

"I don't see how you could give the geth this much power. They may have given our homeworld back and are helping us prepare for the battle, but that doesn't make them our friends." Tali complained, following Shepard as he walked around the ship running the routine diagnostic check.

"We have to eliminate the grudges and prejudices for this to work." Shepard said, handing a data pad back to a crewman.

"But we can't be stupid Shepard. We can't just jump into an alliance that just recently started saying that it was friendly."

"They are friendly…"

"That's exactly what I am saying. How can we trust them when they have already served the Reapers? What if they betray us?" Shepard looked at her with his piercing gaze. He grabbed her shoulders and leaned in close, giving her a small smile. "Don't worry. They won't betray us."

"How can you say that Shepard? You saw how easy geth allegiance can change. You rewrote the Reaper following geth by infiltrating a single station and injecting one code. What makes you think that the Reapers won't already have an ability to send another code that switches them back through space so they just have to fly past them."

"It's the best chance we have."

"That isn't a chance that I am willing to take."

"Tali… we have to have everyone working together for this to work."

Tali sighed and rolled her eyes. She took a few breaths, trying to steady her rage that had sprouted from the mention of making the geth a key factor in their success. "Shepard…" She thought about her words carefully before her head drooped slightly. "You're right. We need to trust everyone to survive and they are best choice for communication."

Shepard could feel her pain of accepting the geth as a factor in their success. "What if we put quarians on each of the ships so that every ship will have a strong engineering staff?" Shepard joked.

Tali smiled and looked at him before she laughed. "You just better hope that the geth can be relied on."

"Legion! Can I rely on you?" Shepard yelled to Legion who had been sitting on the opposite side of the room working with other crewmen to increase efficiency on the Normandy.

"Shepard Commander has our support." Legion said with almost a hint of confusion.

Shepard turned to Tali and smiled, pointing at Legion. "Proof."

"That's not what I mean Shepard."

"Then go have a chat with Legion about the odds of them failing."

"What if I do?"

"Then we will both be stepping in the right direction."

Tali turned her head to look at Legion who had returned to fumbling with the controls. She sighed and looked at Shepard again before she walked over to Legion and pulled him away from his work to question the odds of failure. Shepard smiled and watched them for a few seconds before he turned back to the crewmen around him and returned to the diagnostic scan of the ship.

"Captain. A ship has joined us in orbit." Joker said.

"Any sign of who it is?"

"It's your old friend Krog. Should I ready him a small gift basket?" Joker joked.

"Small by Krogan standards would mean cleaning out the rest of ship's rations." Shepard joked back.

"Well I guess there won't be another date."

"Planned on that."

"Should I send him a message?"

"Ask him what he is doing."

"Yes Commander."

Shepard walked into the elevator to make his way to the bridge when Joker's voice returned. "He says that it isn't you business to know. Should I ready the main turret?"

"That would only make the wasp angrier. Best to just leave him alone."

"Never thought of a krogan as a wasp before. I guess none had buzzed in my ear causing me to freak out." Joker laughed.

Shepard shook his head and smiled at the jokes that Joker was spewing about Krog; it made him feel better. The doors opened and he made his way over to Joker's nicely maintained leather chair. Joker flipped through a few readouts before his chair swiveled around and he greeted the commander.

"You're right Shepard. This guy is like a wasp. He won't go away."

"He's just checking us out." Shepard reassured.

"Yeah… I get the same feeling when a wasp flies in front of me."

Shepard looked at Joker's chair as it swiveled back to its original spot. He shook his head again at Joker's carefree attitude that he applied to anything, even the more serious cases, like an attack from a crazed krogan, but Shepard enjoyed the attitude that Joker generated on the ship. More surprisingly, he found that the atmosphere made most if not all of his previous despair fade away and his mind to clear. He patted Joker's chair and turned to leave, leaving the bubble of carefree and reentering the bubble of work and memories.

The motives of Krog still lingered in Shepard's head, but his previous encounter with the strange krogan had made it clear that Krog was going to help Shepard defeat the Reapers, but he wondered what would happen if they both lived through the battle. Would Krog kill him? Or would he drop his hunt and move on? Shepard knew the risks involved, but someone of Krog's intellect and stature was rare in the galaxy.

Shepard stretched his back as he made his way back to the glowing ship hologram that floated in front of him. Lines and bubbles highlighted the new features of the ship and also showed the power draw from the generator and reactor. Everything appeared to be balanced with still an excess that could be used, but Shepard couldn't think of any way of making the ship any more powerful without hindering its capabilities in agility.

The days passed, but Krog didn't break from the ship causing Joker to mention a few more wasp jokes and for most of the crew to be annoyed by Joker's occasional buzzing that he would blast through the intercom, but it made Shepard smile every time he talked so he never argued against it. Even Tali, who was not a part of the original joke, laughed at Joker's buzzing and bee jokes that he placed on Krog though Shepard had to explain to her how a wasp acted.

The new worry and tension of Krog's presence along with the nonchalance joking that was spewed over the intercom lightened the dark mood that Tali and Shepard had been buried in. Kelly walked to Joker's side and rested her hand on his chair causing him to look up at her, smile, and nod. Kelly opened her data pad showing the improvement of Tali and Shepard's psych evaluations and smiled to herself. She patted Joker on the back and went back to her station.

Shepard and Tali managed to jumpstart their positive attitudes again, converting the sadness and regret to a strong sense of survival. Tali used her free time to modify her suit that she had not worn for quite some time. She added in anything that would help her survive if the ship would be destroyed and her being spaced. She added a packet on the back to hold a limited air supply and she checked the seals around the visor and helmet section to ensure that no air would escape.

Shepard looked at his last helmet that was sitting in his room. He found flaws in the design and ways to improve it so that the tubes would not be cut. He took ideas and designs from the quarian suit design and incorporated an under the helmet tube system to ensure the protection of the fragile airways. He added additional seals, similar to quarian design, around key points of his suit in case of a suit rupture. The suit gained a higher survival rating for being spaced, but the suit still had a weakness around the neck where the tubing could still be seen, but the area of possible accident had been reduced to almost five centimeters.

With the ship in prime condition and the motivation and atmosphere improved, Shepard looked forward to the coming battle. He only looked back at his mistakes to make his resolve stronger and his motivation increase further. He looked out his window in his cabin and thought about the probability of surviving this. A small smile and a determined look was his only answer.


	77. Chapter 77: Awakening Life

Krog sat in the middle of his ship, the overhead lights turned off, but the glow of the monitor in front of him cast a sharp shadows across his face. He stared at the monitor with a mixture of rage and thought. Figures flickered on the screen, counting up to one hundred, but only Krog knew why it was counting. The rage slowly and calmly transformed into a look of expectation as the numbers neared their destination.

"The Chameleon Drive" he called it. No other ship in the galaxy had this drive and for good reason. It was highly unstable and it was still in the development stage, but Krog had 'borrowed' the schematics and made his own drive with his own upgrades to ensure his safety.

"Eighty percent"

The ship's engines began to hum loudly as The Chameleon Drive began to come to life. Krog stared at the screen in anticipation and wonder as he looked around his bridge at the shaking bottles and jars of his laboratory. He looked back at the monitor.

"Eighty-six percent"

Krog decided to steady the jars and bottles so that he wouldn't lose something that he would 'need' later. He walked over to the jars of cybernetic limbs, eyes, and implants to improve his lifespan and survival. He still had over ten jars of each piece, but his memory told him of the number of jars that he had gone through. He looked down at his body and removed his glove to show his cybernetic hand. He squeezed it into a fist, but he couldn't make himself angry at losing his hand. He sat back down and listened to his own heartbeat and remembered how only one tenth of his heart was real, the other nine tenths had been replaced with cybernetics.

"Ninety-one percent"

Krog made himself remember how much of him was actually real and found that the only thing that he had kept over the years was his left arm. He rubbed it and felt the genuine feelings from real flesh and real nerves and not cybernetic boosted skin. Looking off into the darkness, Krog found that he had been fake most of his life, rebuilt from metal and electronics. He shook his head and grunted.

"Ninety-nine percent"

Krog listened as the engines began to hum with an intensity that was borderline unstable, but he remained seated and calm. When the numbers hit one hundred, the remaining light in the room shut off causing the room to fall into an absolute blackness. Large clanging and banging echoed out of the engine room, but Krog kept his composure and readied himself for anything. The lights flickered back on and the engine room went silent.

The room was eerily quiet and bright, but Krog still managed to open the drive core readouts. He had boosted the power to his ship by twenty fold. He opened bank after bank of information that he had sapped off of the host ship that he had flew into orbit with only moments before. He sent requisition notices to the organizations and labs that had supplied the Normandy with its superior firepower and armor. He broke off from the Normandy and began his task of collecting his new upgrades while he read the log reports of his two favorite Normandy crew members.

* * *

"He broke off of us Commander. He's heading back to the relay." Joker informed Shepard.

"Shepard. Before the ship broke orbit I scanned his ship and found that his power had increased considerably, almost matching that of the Normandy's. I also sensed a spike in our own readouts at the point that his lost power."

"Did it damage the ship in any way?"

"There was no damage done to the Normandy, but new files have been added to the databanks describing a device that was labeled as a Chameleon Drive. There is no mention as to what the drive does, but from my own scans of the schematics, the device sends off unstable mass effect fields which, hypothetically, could rupture inside of the ship generating a singularity."

"But why would he risk that?"

* * *

The engine room sparked with power as the mass effect fields pulsed randomly sending the area around the fields to bend and twist. Krog stood in the doorway and nodded thoughtfully at the results of the Chameleon Drive. He walked back to the bridge and stabilized the fields to a more manageable level, but the instability remained. He knew that he was risking everyone's lives with this device, but he needed this incase of an emergency.

Krog wiped the beads of sweat that had formed on his head, showing him how nervous and afraid he was of this device. He took a couple of breaths and closed the drive core blast shields so he would couldn't hear the instability. He was risking enough as it was to gain this device now when he still had so long to wait, but he wasn't going to risk an early attack and never setting the drive.

He stopped at the first station on his requisition order. The station, being completely automated, scanned Krog's ship and read the power output as the Normandy. The machines instantly went to work adding new armor plating across the ship's hull and integrating a new shield core. Krog nodded at the success of the plan and wiped another wave of sweat off of his brow. In the silence of his thought he heard the blast shields clap and clatter as the unstable fields pulsed wildly. His hand was glued to the drive core calibration which kept the instability in its most stable setting.

With his new upgrades being added, Krog felt relieved long enough to see that he was genuinely afraid of what he was planning, but he knew that someone will have to do it eventually. He sat back and tried to regain his footing and bravery on the issue, but such a device should never had existed, such a drive was too powerful for one person to hold, yet he had turned the switch and opened Pandora's Box. He only hoped that he would never have to use it.

* * *

Shepard, Tali, Ken, and Gabby looked over the schematics for the Chameleon Drive, but each one found it to be impossible to contain. Tali generated holographic representations of the effects of turning on such a device. The bright glow and violent explosion being followed closely with a singularity that could destroy an entire star system repeated itself on the screen. Almost every scenario and precaution that Tali took to maintain the stability of the core resulted in the core's violent end.

"I don't see why Krog would risk his life for this?" Tali stated as her thirteenth simulation exploded in front of her.

"EDI. Have you found any more about the drive?"

"The files were shared not transferred to my databanks."

"Shared?"

"The databanks of both the Normandy and Krog's vessel hold the same information. Krog knows everything about us as we know everything about him."

"Do we still have our personal logs?"

"Everything was shared Shepard."

Tali tensed up only slightly and looked around the room to find some way of escaping long enough to calm her nerves, but her desperate looking around made Shepard look at her.

"Is something wrong?"

"Nothing Shepard… I just feel violated with that krogan reading through our personal logs."

"I feel the same way Tali." Shepard knew there was more to it than that. "What can we do to get our logs back?"

"The files were shared not taken so there is no way for us to counter transfer the data back."

Shepard thought about it and nodded. "Krog said he was on our side. If he needs this information to help us then we should let him keep it."

"Shepard!" Tali objected. "How can we just let someone steal our most personal information and not try to get it back?"

"Get what back? He hasn't stolen anything since we still have it."

Tali felt defeated and bitter at Shepard's words. She stared at him angrily and was about to leave when Shepard interrupted her flight.

"Tali. What are you afraid of Krog seeing that would put any of us in danger?"

Tali turned angrily to Shepard. "I can't see why you aren't afraid of what Krog knows about us! He knows where to hurt us now. He knows secrets that could hurt **us**."

Shepard walked over to Tali who had slowly began to shake either from being nervous or from an anger that had grown inside of her. Shepard embraced her and felt her hard breathing speak her anger into him, but he also felt something else. He felt her beating heart, pumping and smashing against her chest, pointing to something close to the heart, something personal that she didn't want anybody to know, a quarian secret. He only held her close and tried to calm her down before he asked the question that he had hoped would just rise up one day at the table, but had been left to grow instead.

"What was in your personal logs that you don't want people to see?"

Tali quickly pulled away from Shepard to look into his eyes. She saw the error of her ways at making such a sudden movement at the question and tried to play it off as something other than shock.

"Nothing." Tali said quickly, another mistake on her part.

Without the visor blocking her face, Shepard could easily see her struggling with her feelings and embarrassment.

"As long as it is nothing that you should or want to tell me about, then we are fine." Shepard said lovingly, but he had planted the seed of guilt in her. He watched as her eyes shifted nervously as her body wanted to right then and there blurt the truth, but she held it back and nodded stiffly.

Shepard turned back to the reports about the Chameleon Drive and thought about the use of the device, but with such a rough and hypothetical guess on how it ran, everything was guesswork. Shepard rubbed his chin thoughtfully, the stubbles of not shaving scratched at his hand reminding him of his slump. He looked over at the smooth reflective surface of the underlying glass of the table and caught a reflection of himself, pale and sleep deprived.

The image almost didn't look like him that he lost himself inside of the reflection. The dark lines under his eyes, his slightly sunken cheeks, and a highly ingrained expression of depression fogged his appearance. How could he have let himself fall so low? He looked at the schematics one last time and turned to Mordin who just walked in the room.

"Mordin? Can you look over these schematics and figure out the purpose of this device?"

"Hmm. Seems complex. Look into it after important bacteria samples cultivate."

"Good to hear."

Shepard walked past Tali who was still standing in the room thinking about what she should do as she rubbed her hands together. Shepard walked into the elevator and walked out into his cabin. He immediately walked into the bathroom and looked at his reflection in the mirror and cringed slightly. He rubbed the raggedy beard that had sprouted on his face, and he followed the deep, dark lines that had formed under his eyes. He stared himself in the eyes and felt dull and listless as the man standing in front of him stared blankly at him.

Upon seeing his own downfall at his own hands sparked a fire back into his eyes. He glared at the man in front of him and immediately set to remedy the situation. He jumped into the shower after his clothes were thrown off of his body. The warm water filled his cold body with a life and purpose that he had not allowed himself to live for the last couple of days. The water brightened his mood and drove the doubt from his body.

Stepping out of the shower, he wiped the fog that had formed on the mirror, some life had returned to his body. He pulled out his razor and shaving cream and instantly went to work on his face. A pair of scissors followed as he trimmed up short ends of his hair that he had mistreated over the days. Once done, he ran his hands through his hair and proceeded to grab a brush and work on his lifeless smile. He spat in the sink and wiped his face off with another towel as he looked into the mirror, a new man stood before him.

Shepard smiled at the amazing transformation that a shower and some shaving would get him. He laughed slightly to himself as he turned to the door to get clean clothes on, but a figure blocked his way. Rubbing her hands nervously and avoiding eye contact, Tali stood in the doorway trying to get the right words to say what she wanted to say.

"I was acting irrational and stupid back there Shepard. I just let my feelings take over and hide what I wanted to show you." She walked into the bathroom and finally looked up into Shepard's newly brightened eyes. She was almost lost in the shower of hope that they now held and looked around at the steamy bathroom and wet sink. A familiar smile stretched across her face as she remembered the first time that she had swam in water, the first touch, the first sense of freedom.

"I. I would like to take a bath first…" Tali smiled at Shepard who returned her smile with happiness that had been thought lost.

She turned to the shower unit and smiled as she made her way over to it, loosening her robes as she neared the entrance. She looked over her shoulder to see that Shepard had followed her over to the mouth of the shower, his hands on her hips. The robes fell to the floor and she turned to look Shepard in the eyes.

"The files are in my personal files. Password: Rael'Zorah." She said.

"We can look at it together…" Shepard said, taking a step towards his wife.

"Then what will you do while I shower?" Tali asked, though she knew the answer.

"I thought I'd wait with you." Shepard softly pressed his lips against hers and their passion for each other returned. They had been so lost in their decision of leaving the child somewhere safe that they had forgotten about each other.

Tali slowly opened her eyes after the gentle kiss, Shepard could have sworn that they were shining brighter. Tali stepped backwards into the shower which automatically turned on to a perfect temperature. They kissed each other harder and more passionately before as the water ran over their bodies, soothing their aching bond and their sprained affection. Tali felt the life inside of her grow and blossom into a white flower bordered with purple, the same flower that Shepard had given her before he proposed. Her heart raced and her body warmed, but she couldn't figure out if it was the water or Shepard that was warming her.

With a return of their passion, came a return of their undying service to each other and for those they cared for. Nothing was going to get in the way of them and their child, and no one was going to take everything they loved away. Their hearts became adamant and their resolve became impenetrable. They had almost lost the thing that they were fighting for: Life.


	78. Chapter 78: Finding Truth

Life returned to the cabin. Shepard felt warmer and closer to his family and that space could never separate his family tie. Tali felt the same way, smiling with a renewed radiance that had been lost in self doubt and self guilt. Shepard sat at his computer while Tali stood beside him, wringing her hands and losing some color.

"You don't have to look at it Shepard… It's nothing important."

"You made it important Tali." Shepard opened her files and brought up the password protected encryption key.

"I just don't want it to affect… us."

Shepard stopped mid-type and looked at her face. He watched it slowly cringe up and her eyes moisten though she held it back and stared at the screen. "What could affect us?" Shepard looked back at her curiously.

She looked at him and shook her head. "I'm fine just do it."

Shepard slowly turned his head back to the computer, but he kept his eyes on Tali who had gained a wave of confidence, but her breaths were still slightly broken as her heart fluttered. He typed in the final password and a series of schematics and reports of the Normandy SR-1 flew onto the screen. Shepard looked at the images, but he saw nothing that would get between him and Tali. He looked over at Tali whose eyes had latched onto a section the screen.

"What am I seeing here?" Shepard asked, trying to play it off as some kind of joke.

Tali broke her gaze from the screen and looked at Shepard, trying to smile, but her attempts broke away as she leaned forward and zoomed the screen on to a plasma conduit leading to Joker's escape pod. Shepard looked at it thoughtfully. His memories returned to him and he remembered the explosion that had jolted him from the escape pod. He looked back at Tali, confused.

"Why are you showing me this?" Shepard asked, almost afraid of the answer.

Tali took a deep breath in as she tried to collect herself for the explanation. "It was my fault Shepard. It was my fault the engine ruptured causing the ship to blow up. I-I didn't follow protocol. I didn't turn the plasma drives off before we evacuated from the ship. I was afraid and I didn't think and it cost you your… your life." She rubbed her hands together.

"You can't blame yourself for this Tali." Shepard said, almost relieved at the news. "That was the past. What happened then happened and you can't change that, but I am here now, and you are here now."

Tali embraced Shepard with all her strength as a flood of happiness fell over her body and soothed her doubt. She looked back at her doubt and hated herself for thinking that it would have affected them. She questioned how she had even fallen into the hole of doubt and fear, but the only reasons for it was the change in her hormones from the wave of depression that had struck her, but after she had taken the shower with Shepard and felt the depression slide from her skin from the soothing, she felt renewed and repaired. She felt stupid for making such a scene of such a minor overlook. She had acted how Shepard would have wanted her to.

With the self-doubt cleansed from her body and the depression melted away, Tali began to smile and laugh at the whole situation. Even Shepard began to laugh at the build up to this anticlimactic experience. An entire situation that had been blown out of proportions because of a wave a depression and second-guesses, but he wasn't going to live in the past now when his future was the more important issue. Tali's fear of such a mundane fact that held no hold over their relationship presented Shepard with the fragile nature of the universe. A simple depression can lead to obsession and an obsession can lead to pain that could tear everything apart. The factor that Shepard had to exemplify and spread to every reach of the galaxy had to be the power of trust.

The days following Tali's incident were calm, relaxing, and reinforcing. With the weight of the mistaken fear removed from Tali's shoulders, she began to heal with Shepard. Nothing was holding them back from each other and nothing stood in their way. Trust had taken over their lives, and they trusted each other more than anybody else; their lives were one.

Shepard reviewed over the star charts and the habited planets that the Reapers would target first. His determination and his dedication to the galaxy became his life. He slept well and he worked the entire the day, mapping and planning for every incident that might arise, but one factor bugged him the most, the Reaper's shields. He remembered the battle at the Citadel, how the Reaper's shields had absorbed every attack with no signs of weakening. He spent half his time on this issue, rethinking and redoing his plans to account for the shields.

In an attempt to understand the shields more, Shepard read through the Reaper information and tech that the Illusive Man had given him, but it didn't mention anything on the weaknesses. Shepard stopped by Mordin's lab every couple of days to check in on how his study into the Reaper Shield technology was coming, but nothing conclusive was being generated.

One thing was drawn from the studies; the shields worked by negating mass effect fields while using a repulsive field to drive missiles and lasers harmlessly around the ship. Another important fact was that the Reaper ships were all connected. The only solution and hope for the galaxy to defeat them was to break through the shields of one Reaper and put in a code identical to the one that had rewritten the geth, but again, getting just one shield down was going to be difficult, especially with a whole fleet of Reapers breathing down their necks.

They were going to have to fight against a foe that they wouldn't be able to kill until they could break through one and somehow infect it with a virus, but that was a stretch. Shepard had a plan, a network of surveillance fleets with the larger response fleets waiting for the distress of the surveillance fleet, but the shields were still an issue. Shepard contacted anyone who might have an idea to counter the shields. Some were promising, others gave no opinion in the matter claiming it to be impossible.

Shepard patched Mordin into a series of signals from other scientists to find a weapon that could break the Reapers shields. The first three days of the discussions were dull and no progress was gained, but Mordin insisted that they continued with the research. Garrus even started to sit in on the conversations to mention turian weaponry and he opened the doors to a group of turian weapon scientists who started to push the progress along.

Shepard nodded at the progress, but everyday began to feel like his last days. The universe had been unified enough to stand a chance, but the minor issues began to be the determining factor. Even if they could weaken the entire Reaper's shield network it would be an improvement, but as of the that moment, the battle would still be a massacre.

Long days followed as a rough outline and schematic for a weapon began to be drawn out. Mordin scratched his head at the strange weapon, but it was the best that they had. He turned to Shepard as he walked into the room.

"Shepard. Need to talk. Weapon works in test studies, but actual field use may be… catastrophic. If fails, all hope will be lost." Mordin stared at the glowing hologram of the weapon.

Shepard stared at the new weapon too, looking through its information and how it worked. He nodded at the design, but Mordin's words still burned in his mind. He knew that he was going to have to trust this weapon and hope that it would work when it was used. It was the only thing that Shepard had at that moment. He relayed the schematics to the turian weapon builders and informed the Citadel along with Aria of the progress. The Citadel accepted the information while Aria scanned through the design and shook her head.

"What's wrong?" Shepard asked.

"This won't work. You need something more." She angrily looked back up and pressed a couple of buttons sending another wave of information into the computers. Mordin looked over the information as it flew past the screen, his mouth slowly dropping and his brain working quickly.

He opened the schematics to the weapon and looked back and forth from the new information and the specs to the weapon. He nodded a few times and said a few things to himself quickly. He pressed a couple of buttons and slowly added more to the weapon. His pace quickened and the weapon gained a whole new level of complexity that only Mordin could love.

The final pieces were added and Mordin began testing it. The turian weapon manufactures had stopped making the weapon and waited for Mordin to get back to them after he had called a cease to production. Almost a week had passed before Mordin gave the new production schematics.

"New weapon showing better promise, but still unable to account for actual variables. May work may not, but chances are better."

Shepard nodded and made his way to the engineering deck. Tali sat inside of the core room with a data pad, punching through digits of information formulating her own upgrades. Shepard walked past Eric whole appeared to keep an unconscious control of the ship's calibration including Ken and Gabby's workload allowing them to help Tali with the new engine upgrades.

Shepard walked just in time to see Tali commanding Ken and Gabby to work on a calibration system for her new engine add on, a new invention called a particle drive. Shepard looked at the schematics that she had made herself, almost two weeks of work and it was still a rough idea, but she had remastered the Chameleon Drive into a less powerful, but far more stable add-on to the engines.

"Shepard. What do you need." Tali asked, hurriedly as she checked over her numbers and processed the final design and materials need to construct the design.

"I was checking on how you were doing, you've been quiet for almost two weeks now." Shepard smiled, Tali returned it.

"I've been busy keeping my mind off of more depressing matters and keeping it interested in a new design for an engine booster. As Krog had boosted his engine with the Chameleon Drive, I have boosted ours with a safer medium than unstable mass effect fields. I replaced it with particles influenced by mass effect fields. Each particle is unstable, yes, but they can more easily be controlled than just a fluctuating field." Tali smiled wildly and looked back at the engine proudly.

Shepard smiled at her progress and how she was coping with the issues of their lives. He fell in love with her all over again, a second layer of love to the one he already had? Yes. He wrapped his arms around her waist and rested his head on her shoulder. She took a deep breath and smiled at her work.

"This better work Shepard."

"It will."

* * *

Krog looked over his options as the final upgrades were added to his ship. He had the power and maneuverability to outrun and outmaneuver any ship in the galaxy, but he had never seen a Reaper. He had looked through the information that was on the Normandy's computers, a few pictures and hypothetical guesses on the origins. He smashed the panel in front of him as the lack of information began to infuriate him.

He rubbed his head angrily and flipped through another series of photos and information slabs. He grunted at another lack of information, but he was beginning to get a general picture of the foe that he would face, a foe greater than Shepard. Krog became excited at the prospect, but the idea of not being able to engage it on his own two feet made him angry. He opened another file, a more recent one, and smiled widely. He laughed deviously as he discovered a detailed layout of an interior of a Reaper ship, its inner weak points, everything.

He listened to a heavy thud against the blast container around his Chameleon Drive core and smiled again. Maybe he didn't have to fight the Reapers on his ship. Maybe he could bring the fight inside of them. He laughed heartily at the prospect of ripping them from the inside out, each and every one that he could get his hands on. He cracked his knuckles and looked over the shield data of the Reapers. It wasn't much, but it didn't bother him for long. He knew what power he held with him and he knew that he held the ace.

The final clang of the machines outside told Krog that the upgrades had been finished and he was set to blend into the shadows and wait for his prey to arrive. He was an excellent waiter and he was going to wait like he had waited for Shepard. He was about to press the engine button when another ship stopped dangerously close beside him.

"Krog!" came an angry, but familiar voice on the other side.

"Liara. A pleasant surprise. Did you lock up the apartment?" Krog joked.

"Yes I did. I was just wondering where you though you were going."

"I'm helping Shepard with his little war. You know… saving the galaxy." Krog laughed which was greeted by Liara's silent anger.

"How could you do that to me?"

"Do what? All I did was take a small trip to upgrade my ship." Krog explained.

"That gave you no right to-"

"To leave? I didn't leave you. I will always be with you. I just need to pick up a few things."

"Without telling me?"

"Would you have let me go?"

Liara thought about it and sunk her head slightly. She knew that she couldn't be mad at him for what he was doing though she wondered how truthful he was being. She did notice some surprising upgrades to his ship, but the idea of Krog helping Shepard failed her logic. "No…" Liara admitted.

"I knew what needed to be done… How did you find me?" Krog asked bluntly.

"You forgot your tracking device at the apartment one day. I pinned a tracker to your ship just in case this happened, and wouldn't you know… it worked."

"I'm glad to see you." Krog said.

"I'm glad to see you too." Liara said lovingly.

Krog smiled and shook his head at his relationship with Liara. It was a strange one indeed.


	79. Chapter 79: Accepting Fate

With no idea what the level of being prepared for the battle that slowly rose from the unknown shadows of the galactic expanse, Shepard and the rest of the galaxy held their breaths in the coming months. Shepard checked over the network of ships and fleets that patrolled important sections of the galaxy and important planets, but everyday the reports came with nothing. Shepard stood straight and firm and kept the message of their victory to keep morale high. He had Legion take a new position standing beside Joker at the helm to keep the network open in case the battle happened on them instead of elsewhere.

A few of the ships had been given the newly developed weapons that were to break open the tough shields of the Reapers while most of the ships carried the viral code to disrupt the shield network, each holding a different segment so that an AI compensation network would have troubles containing millions of different viruses being flooded into only a small process as shield strength.

Shepard's hands had been slightly damp from his nerves, but he made no notice of them, nor did he allow anyone to see it. He spent most of his days staring at the galaxy map in the CIC; a series of circles and lines showed the movements of the surveillance fleets. He checked Legion every few hours to keep a general idea of how he fleets were holding and if they had spotted any attack, but the network was cold with reports.

The engines to the Normandy hummed only slightly louder with the new drive, but the power output had been increased dramatically, allowing a stronger weapon strike and faster engine speed. With the new power, a stronger workload was given to the engineering team which Tali enjoyed having her mind occupied with the new duties. With the four engineering crew members working together, the workload barely affected them.

Months passed. The time had reached the three year mark of the four year arrival time that Harbinger had said to Shepard, but Shepard didn't trust the time given to him, he didn't trust anything that any Reaper would tell him as the allotted time. He checked over the perfect condition of the ship in an attempt to see if anything was out of place or weakened from wear or from not being maintained, but the ship was in a fit fighting condition.

Another ship pulled up alongside of the Normandy and patched a message over to the Normandy. It was Liara.

"Shepard. It's good to see you again."

"It's good to see you too Liara. Why are you out here?" Shepard asked.

There was a slight pause. "Krog told me to give you a message." Shepard stiffened slightly at the name of his old nemesis, but he had placed his trust into Krog's opinion. "He told me that he was going to take a Reaper down, alone. He rocketed off into the Galactic Expanse to try to find one of their scouts and kill it."

Shepard rubbed his head and tried to think. He slowly became aware of the sweat that had formed from his nerves and he wiped it away. He didn't want heroics, but he knew he wouldn't be able to change Krog's mind after it had been set. Shepard pressed the respond button, but he paused slightly as he assembled his thoughts.

"Are you okay with his decision?" Shepard asked.

Another long pause. Even Shepard could feel the tearing emotion in Liara's pause, but he still waited to hear her response. "I'm okay…" she said half-heartedly.

Shepard nodded and knew that she wasn't okay with Krog's decision, but she was trying to conquer her emotions over the subject. "So where are you going now?" Shepard asked.

"I'm staying with you… like old times Shepard… well… I'm on a different ship," She laughed. "Then again, I guess you are too."

Shepard laughed at Liara's logic, but he heard her laugh stop short as the sadness broke it. Shepard sighed and tried to think of something to tell her to make her feel better, but he couldn't think of anything that would comfort her over the loss of her crazed Krogan boyfriend. "He'll be okay Liara. He's a tough one to kill…"

Liara laughed half-heartedly again. "I know…" Another long pause followed. Shepard was about to tell Joker to drop the communications when Liara spoke one last time. "Thank you Shepard… for everything."

Shepard knew she was now crying, but he knew that she was happier with that thought then the thought of Krog dying on his obsession with killing a Reaper. He turned the communication link off and walked back to the galaxy map. A blinking red line on one side of the galaxy caught his attention.

"Joker! Set a course to the alert location!"

"Aye Commander!"

The Normandy rocketed off to the mass relay that would punch them straight into the think of the battle. Hopefully the weapon had worked and the viruses had been properly infected into the Reaper's systems. The short wait to the mass relay felt like an eternity as each and every second felt like another vessel falling, another ship full of people being destroyed.

The ship hit the mass relay and instantly flew into a scene of tranquility. The fleet slowly orbited the nearby star and nothing appeared out of place or destroyed. Shepard scanned the surroundings for anything, but upon discovering nothing he sent a message to the fleet commander.

"Sorry sir. A solar flare caused a mix-up with the ship's sensors. We sent a message to the surrounding response groups, telling them of the false alarm. Sorry sir."

Shepard's heart slowly slowed back down to a more reasonable level. He took a few breaths to steady his nerves more and closed his eyes to gather himself together. He looked at the positives of the false alarm and was pleased at how fast everyone had responded to the call. He nodded at the "test" and returned his ship back to his mid-ranged post. Unconsciously he rubbed his hands together, feeling he perspiration that had instantly condensed onto his hands. He took another breath and returned to his galaxy map.

He wanted to sit down and collect himself some more, but he knew that he had to stand and stay adamant to the coming battle that could happen at anytime at any second in his opinion. He looked at the sensors at Liara's ship that had followed closely beside him in their sudden change of course and direction and smiled. It felt like his old team was with him again, but not everyone was back.

Shepard sighed and placed his hands on the back of his head as he stretched out his muscles and cracked his back. The sudden change of relaxation even caused him to yawn. "Joker. Keep an eye on the sensors. I'm going to get some sleep."

"Aye Commander"

Shepard's bed sat in the dim light and he fell backwards onto the bed and closed his eyes, instantly falling into sleep, but his body alert to any warnings or alerts from Joker.

_Alerts flashed and billowing smoke filled the hallway. Shepard's lungs constricted to the smoke and it burned at is bit down his throat as he took a breath in to his lungs. He looked around for his helmet and grabbed it off of the shelf and looked around again with a visor and air supply cleaning his burned throat and eyes. He was in engineering and the ship was heavily damaged. He ran through the smoke and fire, his radio was open to an outer speaker._

"_Tali!" Shepard yelled through the smoke. "Tali!" a bulkhead collapsed in front of him causing him to block his face with his hands. He looked right and saw the door leading to the main engineering deck. He stumbled through the door as the ship rocked again. "Tali!"_

_A figure stumbled out from one side of the room, over the body of a man, Eric. It was Tali still trying to close then engine down to prevent it from exploding and repeating what had happened on the first Normandy._

"_Tali!" Shepard yelled, shielding his eyes from a bright spark from a ruptured power line in the ship. "We have to go! Now!"_

_Tali stumbled over the controls and looked at Shepard, she was wearing her suit, visor and everything. "I can't leave! I have to finish turning the engine off!" Tali yelled flipping through another series of codes._

_Memories from the first Normandy flooded into Shepard's mind with his discussion with Joker. "We have to go now!" Shepard grabbed her arm and pulled her away from the console and stared into her eyes. "I'm here, with you. You don't have to worry about your mistakes now."_

_Tali stared at him slightly before she turned around and pressed on button. The engine instantly disengaged and the power began to drop. Some of the fires even went out as the stream of fuel ceased and life support began to fail. Only the main tanks of oxygen still burned on the ship. Tali turned back to Shepard and grabbed his arm as they made their way out the other door to the engineering platform. The escape pod for the engineering wing sat at the end of the hallway._

_They ran for the switch, but an explosion knocked them off balance and sent a shower of metal and sparks onto them. Shepard held himself up on the railing, but Tali fell to the ground as a metal plate landed on her. Shepard's heart raced as he grabbed the edges of the metal and lifted it off of her. He quickly grabbed her hands, her strength showed that she had been unharmed._

_When they started running again, Shepard felt Tali limping and pushed his weight into her so that she could use him as a crutch. He lifted her up as he saw the cargo bay collapse into space. Tali wrapped her arms around him and reached out her free hand, pressing the button to the pod. Shepard was just about to place her into the pod when the gravity to the ship ceased to exist._

_He floated up into the air and struggled to get her into the pod. Tali grabbed the edges and pulled herself into the pod and held her hand out for Shepard to grab. Shepard firmly grabbed her hand, but a sudden explosion from one of the fuel cells knocked his grip away and he floated away from the escape pod. Shepard's breath quickened as he felt himself float down the hallway, back to the burning death that he had almost escaped again. _

_Acceptance almost became reality, but a sudden pull on Shepard's armor made him look back to see that Tali had pushed herself out of the pod with an anchored rope and had grabbed him._

"_Not this time Shepard!" Tali yelled as she pulled on the rope, sending them back to the pod._

_Tali's body drifted down low enough for her shoulder to smash into the lower bulkhead of the pod while Shepard flew into the pod, hitting the back of it. He quickly turned his body around to catch Tali, slightly moaning in pain as she held her shoulder, slowly rising up to the entrance of the pod._

_Shepard reached out for her hand as a spark caught his eye behind Tali. The leaking oxygen from the life support systems had been ignited from some spark at some point to the ship. Shepard opened his mouth to scream for Tali's name, but the sudden rush of the blinding fire washed out his voice._

_He looked past his hands that he had thrown up to block the blinding light to see that no one was on the other side of the door. His heart raced and his mind clicked furiously to try to understand the situation._

"_Tali?" Shepard asked weakly, as a small wave of tears trickled down his cheek._

_A sudden bump on his head caused him to look up and see her floating above him, unconscious. He pulled her down and strapped her into the seat and hit the launch button, latching his own seat. He listened to the doors open and the sudden rush of the pod escaping into space. He sighed before he looked over at Tali, who was still slumped in her chair._

_Shepard patted her shoulder and said her name lightly, trying to get her to wake up. She slowly stirred and looked around the room._

"_Shepard?" She asked weakly._

"_Yes. I'm here."_

_Tali laughed weakly at his response. She unclipped her buckle and floated over to him. Shepard unbuckled his and did the same, meeting in the middle. They both embraced each other, Tali flinching slightly from the sprain on her shoulder, but she knew that she was safe. A sudden hiss and strange silence hit their ears and they looked at the side of the pod. One side broke away revealing space and stars littered with a shower of broken metal and smoldering grating._

_Tali took a deep breath in and turned back to Shepard, giving him another hug as the edges to the pod broke away. They were all that remained as the pod fell away from them. They floated in space over a glitteringly beautiful planet, stuck in orbit. Tali stared into Shepard's eyes and sent a message to him as his vision began to blur._

"_Thank you…"_

Shepard jumped up from his bed and looked around his room, sweat dripping from his brow. He looked over to the mass that was laying beside him and saw that it was Tali. He breathed out and laid back down, wrapping his arms around her waist and smelling her hair, her presence. He wasn't going to lose her, not now or ever.

Tali stirred slightly and opened a tired eye to look at Shepard. She smiled and stretched her back as she felt Shepard's tight grip. She drifted into a half sleep again with the last words escaping from her mouth.

"Thank you…"


	80. Chapter 80: Beginning of the End

The waiting and surveillance became so routine that life in the galaxy almost went to how it was before the Reaper scare. A few people even began to doubt this warning that Commander Shepard had given them, but many people couldn't complain with the new security and upkeep. Commander Shepard remained adamant and ready as the days passed by him, his dreams telling him of defeat, but his body rallying for victory.

A soft beep followed by a loud alarm filled the Normandy as one of surveillance fleets sounded off. The Normandy reacted almost instantly to the distress and blasted towards the mass relay for their journey to the alert. Shepard clenched his hands around the railing as he glanced over at Legion who turned to him.

"Shepard Commander. The Old Machines have been spotted. Anti-Reaper shield defenses have failed. Fleet is taking defensive maneuvers." Legion relayed.

Shepard dropped his head slightly in thought as he tried to think of a way of making the weapon work against them. He looked quickly a Legion.

"Legion. Tell them to focus all of their weapons onto a single Reaper at a single point." Legion nodded.

"Orders have been sent, Shepard Commander."

Shepard waited for good news, any news of the battle. He was still hours away from the battle, but he could feel the explosions in his heart as the first losses plagued the battlefield. He breathed out again as he waited for Legion to update him on the details. Legion turned back to Shepard after a few seconds.

"The fleet reports that their attempts at the shield has failed."

Shepard smashed the rail in front of him before returning his tight grip to it. He breathed out slowly before he turned to Legion who stared at him. "Tell them to-"

"They report an unknown vessel approaching the Old Machine."

Shepard's eyes became intrigued and interested. "What kind of vessel?"

"Small, but heavily armored. Scans show that the mass effect fields around the ship are fluctuating in an unstable pattern. No other data received."

"Krog…" Shepard whispered as he stared at the map where the battle was being waged.

* * *

Krog laughed as his nimble ship easily navigated itself around the colossal vessel whose tentacles attempt to shoot him down, but it was child's play to him. He scraped the boundaries of the Reaper ship, just grazing its powerful shields and pressed a button by the drive core. The engine power surged again and the lights exploded, but his ship descended further into the shields and eventually rested on the outside of the Reaper's hull. His intercom was immediately flooded with a soft and deep voice.

"Who are you to question the power of the Reapers. You are weak and fragile. Your extinction is demanded." Zero blasted into Krog's mind.

Krog almost fell over laughing as he pressed another button that blasted a hole into the hull just under his ship. "You are mine, prey!" Krog yelled as he grabbed his shotgun and a krogan sword that he had stolen from a museum. He wrapped the sword around his waist and clipped the shotgun to his back, and just for safety he grabbed a dose of medi-gel.

A center airlock opened on the bottom of the ship revealing the interior of the Reaper ship. He smiled with desire as he jumped into the large ship. A faint glow filled the hallways and rooms that surprised Krog. He had been told that no one flew the ships and that they were simply large Ai's, but this… this was just to easy. Krog had to laugh again.

"You are primitive-"

"Shut up prey! You are going to be mine!" Krog laughed hysterically as he made his way down a hallway.

"Death to the Krogan species is inevitable. You will cease to exist."

With the Reaper's last words, a loud, piercing scream filled the air. Krog looked around though he was still disappointed and unimpressed with what he had seen so far with these so called galaxy destroyers. He only took a few more steps before a hand jutted up from one of the walkways. Krog stared at it curiously and watched it pull itself up, mouth agape, eyes glowing.

Krog grunted as he pressed his hand against the head of the husk and pushed it over the ledge where it smashed into a lower level making a sickening crack noise that made Krog laugh hysterically again. By the time Krog stood up and looked down both corridors that were now filled with the husks. His smile faded slowly and he grunted in thought as he looked down both corridors again to count the countless stream of miscellaneous zombie species that marched relentlessly towards him.

A quick pull on his shotgun, and Krog already had three shots fired into the large crowd of husks sending pieces of what was left of the skin and the chunks of cybernetics. Krog smiled widely again as he felt the shotgun pump against his chest, his personal war drum. He turned around just in time to see a husk lunge at him from behind. He side stepped and grabbed the husk's head in his arm and squeezed causing the head to explode in his arm sending another fit of laughter echoing through the halls.

He looked at the progress he had made and smiled, but when he saw the shadows and bodies still emerging around from every corner of the ship he grunted again. He quickly unsheathed the sword which looked more like an oversized cleaver than a sword. The first victim's head flew into the sky with a loud moan while more husks took its place. One husk managed to grab a piece of Krog's armor, but Krog decided to take the husks arms just for sport.

He checked the battlefield again to see if the end was near, but the same thick flow of husks emerged from every corner of the ship. Krog grunted again, but he smiled instead of thinking about his options. He quickly spun the sword and charged down the corridor, his krogan and cybernetic ally enhanced strength caused the husks to be butter to his plasma jet. The hallways weaved and spun, broke off and refocused in different directions. Krog took the only way that he knew would take him to his desired location, the thickest husk filled hallway.

He punched his way through a fragile wall and blasted another hole into a panel on another wall, opening a door that led to a husk free room. He quickly ran into the room and pulled the door shut. Breathing heavily he let his body rest from the first round of the battle. The room was filled with dark shadows, but enough light was given so that the only way that anything could sneak up on him, would be through the door that he was resting on. The small break allowed for him to reload his spent shotgun and clean off the sticky blade of highly synthetic blood from the husk horde that had given him the greatest welcoming party to date. With the shotgun loaded and the sword polished to a fine glint, Krog heaved the door open again and resumed his massacre. Only a few of the husks managed to scrape their sharp hands across Krog's armor, but none made any real impact.

Through the slicing and explosions from Krog's shotgun, he slowly became aware of a voice that whispered to him, but superseded all the noise around him. He couldn't figure out what it was saying, but it drove into his head like a stake. His motions slowed slightly as his mind drifted from fighting to trying to hear what the voice was saying. The only noises that filled his mind now were his breathing and that murmur. Just as he was about to stop so he could listen better a very quick image flashed across Krog's mind, a hooded figure, mocking him, smiling widely.

Krog's mind refocused just in time to see a scion blast its cannon at him. He quickly jumped out of the way of the blast that sent multiple husks flying into the air. The sword slid smoothly into the soft, bulbous lump that pulsed on the scions side. Krog blasted a strong death roar into the halls as he slid the blade down the length of scion. The two scion lumps fell to the ground as Krog continued his charge down the corridor. A large gate slowly closed at the end of the hallway showing Krog that that room was important.

He smashed through another group of scions that had marched in front of him to block his advance, but Krog was too busy to stop. With a dramatic slide roll Krog managed to make it through the door as a husk smashed right behind him. Standing up, Krog turned to see the husk's arm still protruded from the door. He smiled again and grasped the hand.

"Excellent battle my friend. Almost made me break a sweat!" Krog laughed again, but he stopped immediately when a large clang and humming noises filled the room behind him.

He turned around to see five large praetorians hovering towards him. Krog swallowed hard as he remembered the first praetorian that he had ever killed. He was still young and inexperienced on that day, but he remembered how difficult they were to kill. If he remembered correctly, he had only won through a fluke.

One of the praetorians warmed up its beam cannon while the others loomed towards Krog. Krog scanned the room quickly looking for cover, but it was empty of any type of cover. Krog closed his eyes and breathed out as he listened to the praetorians near while the other reached full power. At the point of his exhale, Krog instantly jumped from where he was standing which almost instantly exploded from the blast of the praetorian. One of the others jumped forwards sending a shockwave that caused Krog to be blown into a wall, hard.

Krog opened his eyes quickly from the hit and moved his head quickly to the side as a large claw from another praetorian hit the wall, jamming itself in the strange metal. Krog stuffed his shotgun into the praetorian's mouth and unloaded his clip. He watched as the back of the praetorian exploded as the shells ripped through its hard skin and into the new praetorian the sat directly behind it.

The first praetorian fell just as Krog jumped out of the way from another claw. He stood up just in time for a claw to smash across his chest, cracking his armor. He ducked from the second swing and rolled from another flying leap. He struggled to regain his breath as another praetorian attacked. He had only killed one of the four and now they pressed him hard. He managed one shot into one of the praetorians' faces, but a claw managed to hit Krog across his head, sending him stumbling to the ground again, coughing blood.

He coughed some of the blood that filled his mouth from his broken teeth onto the ground as he heard the hum return around him. He rolled as another claw hit the ground. Mid roll, Krog unloaded another shell into the praetorian's face, sending shards of metal flying and an ear-piercing screech into the air. Krog held his ears at the scream, but he pushed himself into another roll to avoid another swing. He turned back to the damaged praetorian and launched his sword at it. The sword slashed into the praetorian's eye causing another ear bursting scream.

Krog quickly pushed through the attacks from the other three and grabbed his sword, bringing it across the praetorian's armored body. His muscles strained as the sword broke through multiple layers of support structures and interior armor pieces. A final screech told Krog that the praetorian was dying, the nano-dust confirmed his theory. One claw smashed across Krog's chest sending him, disarmed, against the wall again. He looked up just in time to catch the large claws as they nipped and stretched for his throat.

Krog's strength managed to hold the beast back, but the other praetorians began to make their way over for the kill. Krog struggled and strained his muscles to the limit as he struggled for any way of escaping, but he couldn't move. He looked past his holding praetorian at the other praetorians causing a burst of survival energy into his body allowing him to push the claws just enough out of his way to smash into the wall beside him.

He ducked under the praetorian's large body which screamed angrily at him. The other praetorians jumped into action, one leaped the other charged its laser. Krog caught the flying praetorian and redirected its path to just in the path of the others beam. A violent jerk of the claws brought Krog's kill count to three.

Krog managed to grab his shotgun just as the second praetorian pulled itself from the wall. Krog felt a sweat bead drip from his head. He wiped it with his arm only to discover that what he thought was sweat was a trickle of blood that dripped from a cut across his head. Another stream of blood found its way from Krog's mouth where his teeth were broken and his tongue was cut open.

The shotgun's explosions filled the room as he unloaded the shotguns remaining clip into a praetorian's face. It fell limply to the ground before fading into nothing. The other lunged at Krog, but Krog lunged himself. The shockwave from the praetorians lunge knocked Krog slightly off balance, but he still managed to bring his entire strength into the shotgun that smashed across the praetorian's jaw, breaking it off of its head. Krog's fists quickly followed, denting the exterior armor pieces and smashing the eyes into a broken mess.

The praetorian attempt to grab Krog with its claws, but Krog punched the arms out of the way, resuming his flurry of blows on the praetorian's head. It turned in an attempt to escape the killer blows, but Krog leaped onto its back and grabbed its top jaw and the stub of where the bottom jaw had been. With all his might the metal creaked and crinkled as the praetorian squealed awkwardly as he bent the head in either directions. The body fell to the ground. Krog slid off the body and fell to the ground, his body heavily damaged and the loss of blood making his senses dizzy. He laughed at the battle though he wished the bodies would have stayed so that he could look over his victory with pride. He simply rested on the ground while his body stitched quickly with his advanced and enhanced krogan healing. He laughed from the battle, but it was quickly followed by a series of coughs though that only made him laugh harder.


	81. Chapter 81: Dismal Dimming

Krog closed his eyes monetarily, but a grinding noise brought his attention back to another door. He watched it closely for a sign of life or for that matter, sign of death. A familiar series of moans answered his troubled mind. He stumbled to a weak standing position, but he quickly drove all of the weakness from his body and limped over to his shotgun which was bent in an awkward angle. Clipping the broken shotgun back to his back, Krog made his way over to his sword and picked it off of the ground.

When he had turned around, a steady stream of husks had already made their way into the room, but Krog noticed a few red ones out of the regular blue shade that he was becoming rather sick of. Holding the sword in front of him, he charged forwards into the crowd of husks giving another audible death roar to drive the voices from his head.

* * *

The Normandy launched straight into the battlefield from the mass relay, the large Reaper vessel slicing through the ships, making its way around the battlefield snuffing out all life. Shepard looked around at the destroyed chunks of ships that floated around the battlefield, occasionally smashing into other pieces and sending a shower of bent metal into space.

Joker navigated the agile ship around the debris field into the more imminent battlefield. The Reaper immediately stopped attacking the surveillance fleet that had still managed to survive through the Reaper's relentless assault and turned towards the Normandy.

"Shepard…" the Reaper echoed into the intercom of the Normandy's systems.

The ship immediately changed onto an intercept course for the Normandy, its tentacles grabbing out towards it.

"What happened to the unknown vessel?" Shepard asked Legion without looking at him.

"Some of the vessels reported seeing the ship land on the hull of the ship." Legion relayed.

"Impossible…" Shepard whispered to himself.

The Reaper had already closed the gap on the Normandy by half when the tentacles lurched violently and the ship's back end kicked slightly. Shepard stared at the Reaper's strange behavior.

* * *

Krog slashed through a series of tubes in the heart of the ship as another wave of husks attacked him. He managed to slay what he believed to be most of them, but all he had seen was a slight decrease in their numbers, but that meant nothing. At the end of the hallway was another large door. Knowing that he couldn't stop to figure out the door, Krog decided to use his own key to the door.

In one fluid motion, he managed to cut a husk down the middle and toss a small device at the door where it clang against the door and beeped quickly. With the downward motion of the slash, Krog ducked low to the ground, just as the explosive detonated, filling the entire corridor with a wave of superheated air that melted many of the husks, and caused a number of others to fall over. Krog felt the ship lurch violently from his explosives and when he looked at where the door had been, he cringed himself, but laughed at how well it worked.

The large hole in the wall led straight into another large room where an enormous device sat pulsing in the middle. He walked into the room and looked at the glowing ball which equally appeared to look at him. Krog smiled to himself as he readied another explosive disk.

"Any last words prey?" Krog asked as he tested the weight of the bomb.

"You will fail."

With those final words, Krog flung the disk at the glowing eye, but right as it was about to hit, a large metal iris closed over it and the disk latched onto the iris. The deafening explosion filled the room, but no damage had been done to the heart of the Reaper. Krog grunted at his poor luck and prepared a few devices at once.

"Tricky aren't you?" Krog said to himself.

He pulled his hand back to throw another explosive, but something caught his hand before he could throw it. He looked over his shoulder to see a scion growling at him. The face quickly changed as the scion screamed and fell to the ground, Krog's sword stuck deep inside of its chest.

"Now where was I?" Krog readied the explosive again.

He tossed one short which caused the Iris to close. The first explosive exploded on a lower level causing many important tubes and cables to be ripped from the heart instantaneously. Another rumble, confirmed that he had hurt the beast again. The other explosive was immediately sent into the heart of the reaper where it quickly exploded. A broken and garbled scream filled the entirety of the ship as many key systems exploded instantly. Krog laughed as he shielded his eyes from the bright explosion.

A tremor filled the ship and Krog turned to see that the scion that he had stabbed was gone. His smile faded quickly as he looked right, but before he could look left, a strong arm smashed into his face. He fell to the ground to see the scion, with the sword still protruding from its chest. Its gun lowered and narrowed into where Krog struggled to stand. It fired, hitting Krog square in the chest. He fell back, bending the railing on the edge of the large hole of the core of the ship.

The burning blue plasma began to eat through his armor and burn at his flesh. He roared from the pain, but he managed to concentrate enough to jump to the side as another shot ripped through his railing. He ran straight at the scion and grabbed his sword, ripping it across the scion's body. The scion managed to fire a point blank shot into Krog's chest sending him stumbling to the ground.

The scion had been killed, but Krog could barely keep his eyes open from the shock that his body was experiencing. He coughed blood into his hand and pushed his body to stand. He opened his single vial of medi-gel and injected it straight into the large gaping wound that the scion had ripped into him. He propped himself up with the sword and ripped the gun arm off the scion.

Coughing another handful of blood, Krog propped himself on the gun as a crutch and made his way back to his ship. A ship's systems exploded as everything began to overload from the shock in the system that Krog had created. He was surprised and grateful that many of the husks had collapsed on the corridor floor and were surprisingly inactive. Most of the ones that were still active were tossed into the air or smashed by falling pieces of debris or exploding element zero conduits.

Krog managed to keep one eye open and one motivation to keep him awake. He limped around another corner and coughed blood onto the wall as he quickened his pace as he listened to the chain reaction explosion speeding up. He breathed deeply as some of the blood began to run into his lungs causing a fir of coughing. A group of ten husks ran through the dust and smoke straight towards Krog. He grunted slightly from the ship still trying to kill him.

He raised his makeshift crutch and squeezed one of the nerves causing the gun to fire. The shockwave blasted the husks into separate sides of the walkway. Krog tried to laugh at the spectacle, but a tightness in his chest reminded him of why he had quickened his pace. The large room where he had fought the praetorians shook violently as the chain reaction of explosions began to speed up around him.

The large blast doors that he had squeezed through was opened at an awkward angle from the exploding conduits and fuel lines. Krog squeezed through the gap and stumbled over the numerous lumps on the floor. The lights blinked rapidly as the power began to fail on the ship. He quickly flipped the small flashlight on his shoulder to see the hallway was filled with the bodies of countless husks he had killed up to that point. The pride and sense of victory filled his smile as it grew across his face.

He fired a round into the bodies, clearing the way so that he wouldn't trip in his weakened state. He rounded a familiar corner and saw the glow of his ship. He laughed to himself as he dropped the scion's gun and limped faster towards the light. From an outcropping room, a praetorian soared out and smashed Krog into the wall. Krog coughed more blood as his eyes bulged from the surprise.

He placed his hands on top of the praetorian's head and pounded weakly on it. One of its claws lifted and smashed beside Krog's head. Krog pulled out another one of his explosives and clipped it onto the praetorian's head and squeezed his legs in between him and the praetorian. With one final push of strength, he pushed the praetorian out of the way just in time for him to turn a husks body over him and block his body.

The super heated plasma filled the air as the explosive ripped through the top of the praetorian, blasting it downwards into Krog's legs. He heard, or did he feel, the loud crack of his leg breaking from the force of the praetorian on his leg. He coughed and yelled as the pain filled his body and the smoke filled his lungs. He pulled himself towards the light and propped himself right below his ship and took a small break, trying to get his breath.

A deep rumble inside of the ship, with a light filling a distant hallway told Krog that his time was up and he had to get into his ship. He used his strong arms to pull himself up the side of the wall towards his ship that glowed with safety. The blood dripped from his mouth and his leg pulsed from the break. He could hear the rush from the explosion approaching down the hallways toward his location.

* * *

Shepard watched as the ship tried to move towards him again, but it lurched again and quickly went limp.

"Legion! What's happening?" Shepard asked hopeful that someone in the fleet had managed to disrupt the field and it was being destroyed.

"No data available." Shepard looked back at the exploding Reaper ship, as it lurched and screamed wildly from the interior explosions.

"Joker! Launch the virus!" Shepard commanded, seeing that the shields were down.

"I can't Commander! The core has been destroyed. The Reaper's not connected to the network anymore."

Shepard slammed his fists against the railing as the ship lurched again. "Where's Krog's ship?" Liara asked through the Normandy's radio.

Shepard turned back to the exploding Reaper ship, quickly scanning it for his ship. He even searched the surrounding space to see the confident krogan flying off to fight another Reaper, but there was nothing.

"Krog's ship is still on the hull of the Reaper ship, Shepard. The engines are still offline." EDI informed him.

Shepard lowered his head at the news that had also been relayed straight to Liara. The ship exploded violently as the element zero core ruptured and ignited. The bright shockwave of the ship stretched out into space in a brilliant array of colors. Shepard and Liara stared out at the destruction in hopes of seeing any sign of the foolhardy krogan, but the blast of debris hid any sign of anything.

Shepard sighed at the loss of Krog and wished that he could comfort Liara, but he could only try to comfort her with words.

"Liara… I'm… I'm sorry for your lo-"

"There he is!" Liara screamed into the radio. Shepard quickly looked back out to see his ship fly out of the debris field. The ship stopped beside the Normandy.

"Krog! Krog!" Liara screamed over her radio waiting for him to respond.

Nothing.

"Krog!" Liara's voice became broken as no response was given.

Nothing.

"Krog…?" Shepard could hear her start to cry.

"Liara…" came a very low whisper from another line.

Liara laughed with happiness, sucking in the sadness that shook her voice and had wet her eyes. "Krog."

Shepard could hear the pain and weakness in Krog's voice and quickly flipped the intercom to the ship on.

"Chakwas! Get a team of medics over to Krog's ship. He needs help!"

"Right away Commander."

"Shepard? What's wrong?" Liara asked, afraid of his urgency and blind with her own happiness to see his reason for it.

"Krog isn't safe yet."

"Krog?" Liara asked, but no one answered her again. "Krog!" Liara started to cry again.


	82. Chapter 82: Painful Living

Chakwas's team entered the Krog's ship. A lump on the floor caught their attention and they quickly walked over to it to find the crumpled mass of Krog, barely breathing. Chakwas quickly scanned Krog's vitals and quickly applied a fair amount of medi-gel over the stubborn krogan's body where the scion's blast had burned through. The krogan grunted slightly and pulled himself up on his chair and turned to look at Chakwas. He glared at her angrily and brushed her away.

"Leave me alone human…" Krog said.

Chakwas stared at him angrily and had the team hold the weakened though still powerful krogan. They struggled with his weak strength, but it gave Chakwas time to sedate the krogan with the most powerful sedative that she had. The team lifted the krogan onto their shoulders and dragged him slowly out the door to the waiting shuttle to transport him to the med-bay.

Krog's vision was blurry when they finally opened. A bright light and faded voices filled the room as a few shadows walked around him. The sedative had blurred Krog's senses and he almost thought that he had been killed and had reached some higher plane to live out his sins, but slowly he noticed the metallic bulkheads and medical equipment. He tried to move, but he felt the restraints holding his body down. The act of being held against his will infuriated him and he looked around for the unlucky kidnapper, forgetting what had just happened.

His eyes quickly caught the familiar silhouette of someone that he respected as much as he had grown to hate.

"Shepard…" Krog growled through his teeth.

His vision returned to him showing that both Tali and Shepard stood in the room, both sporting powerful shotguns staring at him. The sight made Krog laugh hysterically as he moved around in his restraints.

"I bet you enjoy seeing me like this." Krog said staring up at the ceiling.

"No. I don't. What do you think you were doing? You could have gotten yourself killed in there!" Shepard yelled at him.

"Why would you care?"

"Because you are as much alive as I am. You promised you would help me win this battle. You promised you would-"

"I would what! Serve under you? Ha! I said I would help you Shepard. I never said I would join you." Krog spat.

"Why are you doing this to yourself?" Shepard asked.

Krog grunted and looked away from him. "Do you know what it's like Shepard? Do you know what it's like to be a krogan who wishes to die in battle, but nothing can stand in front of him? A krogan that has lived beyond their time, time and time again, but nothing ever stands strong against me? You were the closest. You almost killed me and I have to say it was my second most exciting battle." Krog laughed bitterly.

"You want to die?" Tali asked, lowering her shotgun in disbelief.

Krog turned his head and stared right at her. "I've wanted to die since the day I was born… I wanted to die when I killed those krogan miners, but none stood in my way. I hoped to be killed in a blood pack raid, but they held me back. I hoped to die freelance, but the most powerful creatures in the galaxy fell under my boot. I enjoyed the power that I held, but… nothing ever made more happier than the day that you almost killed me. The pain was…" Krog took a deep breath in, "… exhilarating." Krog smiled.

"You're suicidal." Tali said.

"I'm not krogan anymore! I have more cybernetics than I actually have flesh! Part of my brain is cybernetic!" Krog yelled.

"Then why didn't you stay on the ship when it exploded?" Shepard asked.

Krog took strong breaths in trying to keep his stare on Shepard. "That's cheating…"

"Cheating?" Shepard asked.

"I have to do everything in my power to survive. If I fail from all my power than I have died an honorable death. Dying simply because I prefer death is a death of a coward." Krog rolled over to avoid Shepard's gaze.

"So you attacked us because you…?"

"I wanted to be killed by you! In battle!" Krog bellowed into the wall.

"Is that what you always wanted Krog?" Liara asked, who had been standing in the doorway the entire conversation.

Krog turned slowly to look at Liara who was now crying. He didn't want her to hear that. He didn't want her to know. He had tried to escape her so that she would only hear how he valiantly died fighting the Reapers. His heart skipped beats and his mind became a fury of ideas to dig himself out of the hole that he had dug himself into.

"Love wasn't part of my plan…" Krog said softly.

"Love gave you a reason to live." Shepard stared down at Krog who glared at him angrily.

"Yes…" Krog said avoiding his gaze again.

"Commander? I ran a brain scan on your 'friend' here…" Chakwas started. "He is showing an elevated use of his brain than normal krogans."

"It's because of the cybernetic implants…" Shepard informed her.

"No commander. His actual brain is showing an increase in neural behavior."

"What does that mean?" Shepard asked, turning to her.

"I don't know… He is far more aware of his existence than most krogans."

"What would that do to him?" Shepard asked, becoming completely focused on Chakwas's words.

"It would explain his suicidal tendencies and his increase in adrenal behavior. He is not a normal krogan. He is compelled to fight to his highest potential, but his mind can't stand the guilt and his knowledge of his existence." Krog stared at Chakwas.

"Kill me Shepard…" Krog said, staring up at him. "Release me and give me a gun and kill me. Let me die an honorable death. A death in battle." Krog said without fear or weakness.

"No." Shepard said without hesitation or weakness. "I won't be the one to kill you… I help people… I don't execute people." Shepard walked from the room. Tali stared down at the broken krogan. The hate that she had harbored for him, instantly melted away. She turned and equally left the room, but she left with far more hesitation.

Krog turned his attention on Liara who still stood in the doorway, awestruck at what Krog had pleaded that they do to him. "Krog…" Liara took a step towards him, extending her arm towards him.

Krog wanted to yell at her to leave, for her to leave him alone, but he felt those feelings flood his body again, and he couldn't bring himself to lash out at her. He managed to turn away from her and closed his eyes. He hoped that his action would cause her to leave, but a soft, gentle hand reached up and felt across his battle worn arm. He turned to her and looked at her tear filled eyes. His glance upon her face caused her to finally take a broken, deep breath which shook a tear from her eye, landing softly on the bedside. Krog sighed and grabbed her hand.

"As long as you are with me, I can't die…" Krog said slowly with a hint of anger and love.

Liara buried her face into the side of Krog and cried deeply into his shoulder. Krog comforted her by placing his hand on her gentle head and stoke it slowly. He head hid his view from his body and for a second he didn't feel krogan. The sense of suicidal release fled from his body and a sense of belonging filled the gap, but it quickly faded as he remembered everything and drove the thoughts and feelings from his body. He knew what he was and he knew what he had to do. He had to try again.

* * *

Shepard sat at the mess hall table with Tali sitting next to him. Shepard glanced every few seconds over to the med bay and grunted slightly at the scene playing out inside.

"He never feels like the same krogan…" Shepard said to himself.

"He's troubled Shepard…" Tali said softly.

"He's been troubled for too long… nothing can save him from his own desires."

"I think Liara can."

"I think she is too late to help him. I think she only delayed the inevitable."

Tali stared at Shepard knowing that he was right, but she couldn't bring herself to accept that reality. She had wished hope for Krog after she had heard his story of perpetual living and suffering that he would be able to move on and accept who he was and live with the knowledge of who he was, but she couldn't doubt Shepard's words. She managed to shake her head and rise forlornly.

"I wish I could help him too… I wish I could just kill him and put him out of his misery…" Shepard said as Tali rested her hand on the corner. She stopped long enough to listen to the sentence completely and think about it briefly. She sighed and kept walking.

Shepard remained sitting at the mess hall table. Almost two hours later, Liara left the room, her eyes still wet with tears, but it showed signs of drying. She looked at Shepard, but when she noticed he was making eye contact, she turned quickly away from him and kept walking. Shepard knew something was up, and he knew what it probably was. He remained seated as he heard the elevator rise.

He rose from his chair and walked slowly over to the med-bay door. He thought briefly before he walked into the room to find an empty bed and Chakwas unconscious. He didn't sound the alarm and he didn't report that Krog had escaped. He walked over to Chakwas and made sure she was till alive before he lifted her and placed her into a more comfortable position on one of the beds. He searched around and eventually injected her with a counter-sedative.

"Commander! They escaped!" Chakwas protested quickly upon gaining full sense of consciousness.

"I know…" Shepard said, staring at the door.

Chakwas reached for the alarm, but Shepard stopped her. "Let them go… we can't do anymore for him."

Chakwas stared at him with protest for a few seconds, but she vaguely knew that he was right. He felt the ship shake slightly as Liara's ship exited from the Normandy. He knew she would detour and drop Krog off on his ship before she returned to her ship. He slowly made his way back to the elevator and returned to the CIC and made it to the helm just in time to see Krog's engines activate and the ship to quickly bolt away from the.

"Whoa!" Joker coughed on the noodles that he had been eating. "Should I pursue Commander?"

"No… let them go…" Shepard said as he watched Liara's ship follow Krog's ship closely. He stared at the strange couple and smiled briefly. "They have their own battles to fight…"

Joker stared at Shepard and back at his noodles. He shrugged at Shepard's words and resumed stuffing his face with noodles and enjoying himself. Shepard turned from Joker and walked slowly down the corridor back to the galaxy map, his head lost in thought. He walked to the top of the galaxy map platform and looked at the non responses around the galaxy.

"One Reaper?" Shepard asked himself. "Why only one? Unless…" Shepard jumped back to his personal computer and quickly opened the bookmarks of Reaper technology and the small prothean description of the reaper history which was still vague and only theories, but it gave him enough info to know that he one Reaper ship was the scout to gauge the defenses of the galaxy, the weakest vessel in the Reaper fleet.

By the time he looked up from the computer, multiple alarms rang through the Normandy as multiple areas began to be attacked by Reapers. He jumped up to the map and found the closest battle and relayed the coordinates to Joker who coughed from inhaling another noodle. The ship quickly turned and flew back to the mass relay to immediately jump to where one of the battles were taking place.

Shepard looked at Legion and hoped for good news, but just the way Legion turned to him Shepard knew that something was off at the battle. "Shepard Commander, weapons have failed against the shields. Multiple Old Machines have been spotted in the area. Response team has been called to each area. Losses are catastrophic.

Shepard gripped the railing again as he thought of a different way of punching through the near impenetrable Reaper shields, but nothing came to mind. He knew that if they fired enough at one they could punch through the shields, but that would be an entire fleet for each Reaper. A fighting force that they did not possess. Shepard lowered his head slightly before he looked at the galaxy map again as multiple more markers turned red. Within a few minutes, every perimeter marker had turned red. The real battle had begun and they were losing quickly.


	83. Chapter 83: Illusive Insurance

The Normandy was instantly thrown into the fray of another large battle. Upon their arrival, a fury of voices and screams filled the radio as multiple ships were destroyed from the Reaper invasion. Shepard breathed in slightly as he steadied his nerves from the familiarity of a massacre. The Normandy easily navigated the debris field to see at least five Reapers tearing apart the fleets.

Lasers and missile salvos filled the dark space around the battle, exploding in brilliant colors against the shields of the Reapers. Shepard looked down at the map and shook his head as multiple areas went quiet from their loss and knew that many would follow.

"Joker. Ready the main gun." Shepard said.

"Main cannon charged."

"Fire!"

The intense heat of the Thanix cannon smashed into the shield of the foremost Reaper. The beam spider webbed around the outside of the Reaper as their shield dissipated the entire shot without any signs of weakening. Shepard breathed in heavily as the Reaper turned its attention onto the Normandy taking an almost one hundred and eighty degree turn towards them.

"Prepare to outmaneuver their attacks Joker." Shepard said as he stared at the looming ship nearing them again.

He knew that this time they weren't going to be lucky with a crazed krogan blowing it up from the inside, but he did hope that something would come to help them through the battle or at least tip the battle into a more balanced degree. Shepard had unconsciously made his way to beside Joker's chair so that he could watch the entire battle as it unfolded.

The looming shape of the Reaper quickly grew as it rushed the Normandy. Joker quickly pumped the engines to the ship to maximum and quickly whipped the ship into an obtuse angle to the Reaper ship. Joker knew that he couldn't outrun the Reaper so he tried to keep his turns sharp and crisp to try to use the Normandy's agility to save everyone's lives. The sweat dripped from Joker's forehead as he turned the ship into another hard right.

The Reaper's tentacles grabbed out into space, seemingly more interested in trying to grab the Normandy than actually trying to destroy it. Shepard knew that they were after him, but for reasons that he still couldn't put his finger on. Was it to demoralize the galaxy? Was it indoctrinate him like they had done to Saren? Was it for some other reason that was beyond anything that Shepard could imagine? He didn't know, nor did he care to know with the Reaper nipping at their heels.

The ship made another quick turn to avoid the Reaper's gripping hand and to avoid a collision with a destroyed battleship that hung suspended in space like an empty shell. Shepard felt the pain of losing the crew to the ship, blaming himself for not acting sooner. The Reaper ship smashed into the destroyed battleship, sending a rain of broken metal chips and slabs. In a fit of rage, the tentacles closed on the ship, pulverizing it to a crumpled mess.

The short amount of time that was spent crushing the ship gave Joker enough time to turn a full one hundred eighty degree turn, firing another round of the Thanix cannon. A peppering of small explosions on the Reaper's hull made Shepard and Joker smile as they had broken through the Reaper's tough shields, but a sudden grab with its tentacles caused Joker to pull another quick maneuver that could be felt all over the ship even with the gravity stabilizers in place. Joker held his breath as the tentacles filled both sides of the helm's windows, closing in quickly. He bumped the engines up past their limit to rocket the ship just through the danger, a slight rattle was the only evidence of how close the claws had been.

The engineering crew's workload became increasingly difficult with the intensity of the power draw from an attack and an engine boost, but the modification that Tali had made to the engine appeared to keep the engine alive with only a few sparks from the need of calibration that was quickly solved by Tali's deft hands.

"Tali! How are the engines?" Shepard asked through the intercom.

Tali scanned over a few of the readouts and nodded to herself before she answered. "It's being strained Shepard, but they are holding."

Shepard refocused his attention back to fury of explosions and ion cannons filling space with their beautiful array of death. Shepard watched as one Reaper's shields finally gave way with a missile salvo smashing heavily into its side sending pieces of hull and metal into the vacuum of space. The blurred outlines of the heat wave from the explosions gave the explosion a slow motion-like shockwave.

Almost lost in the fury of the battle and an ounce of victory from an otherwise losing battle, Joker almost forgot about the Reaper ship that was hot on their tail. A quick shake of the ship with a loud grinding noise as the tentacles scraped along the armor plating echoed a deafening noise into the ship. Many crew members stopped working to put their hands against their ears.

The Normandy blasted past the mass relay as it struggled to avoid the grasp of the Reaper's hold. The sudden blue spark from the relay was just visible in the corner of Shepard's eye as they passed by it. The ship shook quickly and a force behind them hurled the ship off of its stabilizers causing it to spin wildly. Shepard was thrown against the roof and against the walls as the Normandy hurled in circles; Joker desperately trying to regain control of the ship.

The ship finally leveled out with Shepard pushing himself up from the floor, a small cut above his eyebrow where he had hit a vent. He looked past Joker to see the side of the Reaper, melted and torn, slowly drifting off into space, the reminants of a massive explosion where the hole had been made.

"What the hell was th-" Joker started.

The mass relay sparked with blue energy again as a series of missiles blasted through, heading straight toward the remaining Reapers. Shepard watched them only momentarily before he quickly turned to Legion.

"Legion! Tell the fleet to get out of there!"

Shepard quickly looked out the helm's observation window to see the missiles flying faster and faster to their destination. A few of the ships had quickly turned away from the ships and headed off in different directions into space. The light blue trail of the missiles drew a perfect trail behind them as they quickly turned and focused their attention of the Reapers. The Reapers only had a chance to move slightly before the first missile made contact.

The light that was emitted caused Joker and Shepard to grunt as they flinched back ad hid their eyes from the blast. The spatial ripple from the magnitude of the explosion rippled the Normandy again, but this time Shepard held onto Joker's chair tightly. The ship stabilized again showing the result of the unknown attack. All of the Reapers had been completely wiped out along with a number of allied ships that had been caught within the blast radius. Shepard stared at the destruction, shocked at the damage that those weapons had made and shocked at how many allied units were lost from such an attack.

"Shepard. It looked like you needed a hand." Came a voice that Shepard wished that he would never have to listen to until after the war.

"Illusive Man…" Shepard slightly growled through his teeth.

"I'd thought you would be glad to see me… especially since I just saved you from being turned into Reaper pawns."

"You killed good people!"

"I did what had to be done to keep you safe."

"What about keeping them safe?"

"Them? I have no use for them… You matter more than them. I still need you."

Shepard grunted at the Illusive Man's conceited words. He wanted to terminate the comm and ignore him, but the large dreadnaught of a ship passed through the relay. The hulking cannons were slightly hidden from the strength of the shields that could withstand most attacks, including a Reaper beam attack. Joker stared at the ship, mystified by its complexity and of its strength. What surprised him more was when the engines turned on and the ship quickly gained speed to that that would match that of the Normandy.

The ship quickly stopped beside the half left corpse of the first Reaper. Tiny ships dropped from the dreadnaught and flew into the interior of the Reaper shell. The last remaining ships from the allied fleet that had been devastated by the barrage of powerful missiles quickly pulled up beside the Normandy.

"What the hell was that Shepard?"

"It's Cerberus… they are trying to 'help' us."

The turian captain on the other side grunted from the news. "Tell them they can help us a bit less…"

Shepard agreed slightly to what the turian captain said, but he knew that the Reapers most likely would have killed each and everyone of them if he hadn't stepped into the battle. Shepard hung his head as he thought about having the Illusive Man as an ally, but he knew the cost of life that he would go through just to get what he wanted.

"If you think I'm going to fight this war with you, you're wrong…" A small pause which Shepard assumed was The Illusive Man's time to take a long drag on his cigarette. "… I came to save you so you can go back to what I asked for. I saved you from this mistake… don't make me save you from another…" The comm died.

The dreadnaught turned back to the relay as the remaining vessels quickly boarded back onto it. The engines fired again and the ship shot back to the relay and left as quickly as it had came. Shepard breathed out his anger and frustration from dealing with The Illusive Man again. He opened another comm with the turian captain again.

"We need to help fortify other positions that need our help…"

"What! Are you crazy? I lost almost all my men to those… those machines! I'm not risking the rest of their lives in a futile effort against more!"

"Listen! I'm not a fan of going into these impossible odds missions, but we have to keep fighting with every species and forces possible. If we don't fight… well… we will die eventually…" The comm was silent. Shepard waited for a response from his words.

"You have a point Shepard… to the last man…" The captain declared."

Shepard nodded and turned the ship to the mass relay so they could fortify another area from attack.

* * *

Krog sat unsteadily in his chair as his wounds caused his body to jerk with twitches of pain. He breathed out slightly as he wrapped another layer of bandages around his leg that had just been set again. He laughed at the pain and at his life that was waning before him, but the voice that spoke over his radio made him cringe with his thoughts.

"Are you sure you want to do this Krog?" Liara asked.

"For the fifth time… yes…" Krog steadied his hands on the drive controls, slowly turning the ship into another mass relay.

A few areas they passed through showed signs of battle; a few even had Reapers still present, grabbing at the rubbles and ships, searching, collecting. Krog looked at the battlefields, the mass cemeteries of burnt out ship hulls and compartments that had been made tombs. The sight made him worry about the future. Every ship, every fleet that he had snuck past were now laying in a myriad of parts and debris. He clenched against his chair as he stared at the Reapers, harvesting what they had sown.

He felt used and manipulated, controlled and dictated, but he couldn't focus on getting his revenge. He had to focus his attention on the task at hand.

"Do you have the device?" Krog asked.

"Yes… I don't even see why we would-" Liara started.

"Don't ask… Just do… its our only way of making it through this fight with our dignity."

"And our lives?" Liara asked.

Krog sat silently as he spun prothean ball that he had taken from Shepard's quarters, the missing piece to his plan. He repeated Liara's words in his head, thinking hard about what she was trying to tell him.

"Would we even be able to live with what we are about to do?" Krog asked.

Now it was Liara's turn to be silent. She sat in her ship and stared out the window at the edge of Krog's ship that was just visible in her viewport. A tear broke through her eyes, but she smiled instead of frowned. She nodded and laughed lightly.

"I guess we can't…"

They both nodded to themselves as their destination loomed in front of them.

Haestrom and Dholen.


	84. Chapter 84: The Light Show

The brilliant red of the Dholen star glittered magnificently as the small orb of Haestrom spun slowly around in orbit. Krog stared at the star and Haestrom and smiled to himself as he saw that the surveillance fleet had been untouched. He instantly hailed the fleets main captain.

"Captain, I bring word from the surrounding fleets. They need to be fortified immediately. A replacement fleet is coming to replace you."

"Who is this? Do you have authority?" The salarian captain asked.

"I was the only messenger that they could send from the Hades Gamma cluster." Krog lied as he looked at the readouts about the heavy losses at the Hades Gamma cluster.

"Do you have authority?" The salarian asked testily.

"I don't know runt. They put me on the fastest ship they could find and sent me and an escort to find you guys. So are you going to help or not?" Krog said bluntly and in perfect tone.

"And another fleet is coming?"

"Yes."

The pause over the comm showed that Krog had made an impact. He grinned at his impact though he found it was rather easy to convince salarians to be heroes.

"All right… If they need us… you stay here and keep an eye out for the Reapers. I was sick of waiting anyways." The comm ended and the ships began to move out. Krog smiled as they passed his ship and left the star with no innocent or allied soldiers around.

"You ready for this?" Krog asked Liara.

"Always." She said strongly.

Liara sat in her ship and quickly opened an analysis computer. Two probes quickly fired from the ship and made their way towards Dholen, tracking the fluctuations of unstable solar energy. The readouts came quickly and numerous as each probe scanned the star at the same time, on both sides.

Krog cracked his fingers and grabbed the prothean ball from his arm rest and walked to his lab. He grabbed the handle to the drawer, but hesitated briefly before he gripped it firmly, opening it quickly. The dust, misused rawer was empty except for a strange device that had been given to him a long time ago. He picked up the object and scanned it over with his eyes. He blew the dust off of the side where the device became flatter, revealing an engraving on the side. "SB"

Krog gripped the device firmly before he thrust the device into the ball which quickly consumed it. The outer roundness of the ball pulsed and shivered as Krog held it in his hands. He moved his ace away from the strange object just in case it exploded, but it simply continued to shiver. Suddenly, it simply stopped and resumed a thick, solid shape. Krog stared at it rather disappointed at the effects, but when a pulse of glowing green light emanated from the sides and the ball pulsed slightly like a heart beat Krog smiled.

He looked at the many sensors that he had placed at each mass relay that he had passed. He saw that every Reaper in the surrounding star systems focusing on his location. From the count of his sensors, more than fifty would be greeting him in a few hours, but the prospect merely excited him. He placed the ball into one of his jars and placed it beside the other parts that he had left to rebuild himself. He stared at the parts and laughed.

"Won't be needing you guys anymore." Krog laughed as he walked back to his chair and sat down. "Is the star ready?"

"Dholen will reach critical levels in about two hours." Krog looked back down to his sensors and saw that the Reapers would be there in an hour and a half, but he still smiled from the prospect.

"We have to survive for half an hour." Krog relayed to her.

"Very well…"

"Tell me. Have you ever studied the quarian ruins of Haestrom?" Krog asked.

"No. I haven't."

"Well I know a guy who knows a guy… well… the guys me, but I just found that there is a small reservation on the surface." Krog joked.

"A gift before the show? That's so sweet of you." Liara teased.

* * *

The Normandy launched into another battle. The Reapers had been severely weakened as one of the response groups, with heavy cruisers and battleships had managed to blast a few rounds into them before the Reapers began to slash them apart. Two Reapers had been killed while another six battled the large fleet, mainly quarian from the designs. Joker fired another beam from the cannon at one of the more heavily damaged Reapers sending its parts and tentacles off into space.

"Did you upload the virus?" Shepard asked over the comm.

"We tried…" static "but… … …not taking hold. Some kind of… …defense that we can't…"

"Understood." Shepard said.

After the comm closed he slammed his fists against the bulkhead.

"More ships coming from the relay. It's the Haestrom fleet."

"Heard you needed us commander." The salarian said proudly as the ships instantly spread themselves and helped attack the Reapers that still sank their teeth deep into the core of fleets.

"We didn't send for you…" Shepard said, though he was glad that the fleet had showed up.

"You didn't? Damn krogan…" the captain whispered to himself.

"Krogan?" Shepard asked, getting a strange feeling about who it had to be.

"Some krogan and his escort told us that you needed help. I didn't want to believe him, but there was nothing attack the Haestrom sector."

"You did good." Shepard said as he saw that the fleet was needed here more than they were needed at Haestrom, but he knew that Krog and Liara was up to something. He was about to turn and investigate since the battle appeared to be tipping in the galaxy's favor, but another ten Reapers emerged from the shadows of space, ripping and tearing at the new fleet and raising the Reaper count to sixteen.

The odds were severely tipped in the Reaper's favor with their fresh army. Shepard was about to declare the retreat when Joker spoke up quickly.

"More ships coming in from the relay!"

A series of ships of strange design and make-up that were completely unfamiliar to Shepard quickly launched out of the mass relay. A series of small dust-like particles launched ahead of the fast flying ships, looming and expansive. The fleet that had been fighting the Reapers had already set in a retreat under the large swarm. The Reapers turned their attention back to the new nuisance that had arrived.

"Scans complete. Subject: Rachni. Near extinction. Numbers insufficient." Echoed over every radio.

Shepard turned back to the large swarm of Rachni ships and almost laughed as ship after ship poured through the mass relay. The odds were quickly rebalanced, but the main point of celebration was the dust cloud that surrounded the ships. One of the Reapers flew into the dust cloud toward the front of the first Rachni ship. A series of tiny explosions began exploding around the exterior the Reaper ship that quickly stopped in its tracks and lifted a tentacle to fire, but the dust began to become more concentrated.

Shepard watched as the explosions intensified and the shields gave way, opening a hole in the shields. The dust appeared to move and permeate in through the whole and completely dissolve the ship with the tiny explosions. Other dust clouds broke from the main cloud and hovered toward the other Reapers who were equally caught slightly off guard from the Rachni attack. A few of the slightly larger ships sped up quickly to almost FTL state before they blasted through the Reaper's shields and smashing through and into the ships.

Shepard watched as the battle started between the Rachni and the Reapers as the flow of ships continued through the relay. Shepard took the quick change in pace to investigate Krog's plan.

* * *

Krog and Liara walked along the bright and hot surface of Haestrom, Liara had her arm wrapped around Krog's as they walked. Liara smiled and looked at the sun through her hands and smiled as she scanned the towering ruins that covered large areas of the planet. A large geth colossus corpse sat in front of them, its body littered with holes and explosions.

They walked up another flight of steps to an old room where a few dusty computers sat, a few footprints were still visible from the dust. Liara examined the boot pattern of a human or asari followed by two others. The foot prints walked towards a series of quarian feet that had been standing at the computers. Liara smiled to herself as she drew and watched the whole scene unfold in front of her, a scene that reminded her of when Shepard had saved her from some ruins.

"Enjoying yourself?" Krog asked looked at Liara smile at the destruction and the quarian symbols on the wall.

Liara looked at Krog with tears in her eyes. "I wish I could stay here longer…"

"This is only a timed visit… maybe another time… another life."

Liara smiled at Krog and kissed him softly.

"Our final gift to the galaxy."

"Our final gift to Shepard…" Krog said smiling.

Liara nodded and smiled as she wrapped her arms around Krog and hugged him tightly. "Together."

"Forever."

Krog's Omni-tool buzzed an alarm telling him that his time was up. He nodded and they started to make their way back to the ship. Krog reached into one of his pockets and tossed the small ball into a mining hole. Liara looked back and smiled as the deed was now set in stone without hesitation. They entered their ships respectfully and started their engines quickly.

By the time they made it out of the atmosphere of Haestrom, the Reapers had already started to arrive. Krog smiled as he booted up his engine to max capacity and looked at the timer click by the remaining twenty-four minutes; they were late. Krog primed his ships Chameleon Drive to the twenty four minute deadline and grabbed the manual controls.

"Ready?" Krog asked.

"Ready."

Their ships blasted toward the Reaper ships at full speed, their laser array and their missile pods peppered the Reaper's shields to no effect except for gaining their attention. The Reapers instantly began firing their weapons at the couple. The first array of lasers almost connected with Liara's ship, but she quickly recovered and the beam grazed the underside of her ship.

Krog focused on keeping the majority of the attention on him as he set his laser array to maximum spread and lasers to their most random settings. Krog laughed as the new power of his ship was launched over the twenty-five Reaper ships. He quickly dodged another fury of lasers and turned his attention on the ten new Reapers, firing a barrage of missiles into their ranks. No effect, but it made them speak for once.

"You are a nuisance. Where is the prothean orb?" Scourge asked.

"We know where the orb is and you want it… I bet we can make a deal…" Krog said.

"We can find the orb without your help. Your existence is only a hindrance on our progression.

Krog shrugged as he deftly turned the ship past a series of beams that cracked in front of him. He rocketed off to Haestrom quickly hiding his ship behind it while Liara followed closely behind. The Reapers followed with the fifty-six of them quickly scanning the entire system.

"Orb found orbiting close to the star." They launched forward and stopped around the exterior of the star. The source of the detection slowly came into view of a probe emitting the frequency that the orb had emitted. "This is not the orb."

Krog watched as the final seconds ticked past on the clock finally hitting zero. He quickly put his ship onto the planet's surface and activated the cannon. The orb blasted from the hole that Krog had thrown it in and quickly broke through the atmosphere where Liara grabbed it quickly and reloaded it into her cannon, firing it past the Reapers into the Dholen star. At first nothing happened, but quickly the star pulsed with a blue light. The outer layers along with a strong magnetic pulse blasted quickly into the Reapers disrupting their shields and destabilizing their mass effect cores. Krog opened the blast doors to his ship's drive core. He smiled as he pressed the button in his hand causing a bright light to erupt from the core.

Liara watched from orbit as Krog's ship exploded brightly, followed quickly by a darkness that she could never imagine. The surface of Haestrom quickly collapsed in onto the darkness. Liara, felt her ship buckle from the gravity singularity that had been ripped open. She opened a few panels on her ships computer and activated her drive for critical failure. The added pressure caused her ship to rupture sending another burst of electromagnetic pulses across the Reaper's hulls, causing the mass effect fields that were just holding them in place against the singularity.

Shepard emerged into the system to see that everything had changed. The star was gone and was replaced by a darkness that ate at his heart. He couldn't see anything from the black hole's pull on light, but a faint signal blipped towards him. A small probe floated to the ship, hitting the edge. She sent out a team to grab the probe and bring it into the ship.

They popped the covering to the data cores and reprocessed the information into the ships computer drives and decryptors. A log of the happenings of the Haestrom collapse to the Dholen star Supernova were present with a message from Krog and Liara, a farewell. The message merely said:

_Thanks for showing us purpose._

_With all due regards and thanks._

_Krog and Liara._


	85. Chapter 85: Continuum

Shepard dedicated the probe as a memoriam to the heroes of Haestrom. A small engraving and beacon were placed inside of the beaten probe, and it was prepared to be launched into space as a warning of the black hole that would rage for decades to come. Shepard patted the bent hull where pieces of ship or planet had collided with the probe and smiled for the fallen. He let one tear drop onto the cold steel before he smacked his hand on it sending a dull thud ringing through the quiet cargo bay.

He turned away from the probe as it was launched and sauntered back to the CIC to resume the war that was still hitting the galaxy with full force. He looked out the window of the bridge at the looming darkness that appeared to stretch itself out further into space, consuming and spreading, destroying everything it touched. The darkness had turned the tides of the battle back to his side, but he knew that if he let the darkness consume him that he would lose the battle. He squeezed his hands together and filled his lungs with a fresh, deep breath of air.

"Let's go Joker. There's nothing that we can do now…" Shepard affirmed.

Joker nodded solemnly and started the engines back up, turning the ship back to the mass relay. He also took a deep breath of air into his lungs, checking to make sure he was still alive, realizing he was only mortal.

The ship left the system just as another one of the planets slowly stretched out and slowly crumbled into a dusty stream that wrapped itself around the hole. No matter escaped the vortex and none of the matter returned from the darkness that slowly destroyed all traces of a star system in that vicinity.

* * *

The Rachni ships and swarming worker defense cloud purged system after system of Reaper ships, but the suicidal attacks of the fleet could only go on for so long. The Rachni Queen sat in her large central ship staring out at the newest battle unfolding in front of her. An asari looked at her queen cautiously, sensing that the queen was afraid… no… she was ready for death, death of her entire species for the safety of all the galaxy.

"Your actions are justified and noble my Queen, but we can fall back and ready for another attack." the asari recommended.

The Queen turned her head and looked at the asari for just a moment before turning back to the battle in front of her.

"As you wish my Queen." the asari bowed and turned her attention back to the battle. She could sense the feelings and emotion of the Queen and she could tell by the Queen's song that the Rachni were never going to give up and never back down.

This unparalleled bravery made krogans appear to shake in their boots. A swipe from a Reaper's laser slashed across the side of the Queen's ship, but the ship merely began to speed up toward the Reaper in question. The asari stared out at the approaching shape of the Reaper, but she couldn't feel afraid. She took another step towards her Queen and wrapped her arm around one of her legs, resting her head on the side.

"Our song will be heard again…"

The main Queen ship smashed full force into the Reaper ship, sending a swash of metal rain and rock chunks as the momentum continued to grind the ship into the Reaper ship. The tentacles reached up to try to stop the force of the ship from continuing its penetrating collision, but the remaining worker swarm and soldier ships smashed the ships out of the way from ever reaching it in time. The legs jerked violently as the collision began tearing into the Reaper's core. The resulting crack of the core caused a disturbance in the mass effect fields causing the ships to violently fuse and compact before they broke apart into a sphere of metal that broke through the remaining shields and broke into their hulls, killing only one, but severely weakening the other three.

The Reapers gathered their forces again as seven Reapers emerged from the mass relay, fixing the ranks back to the regular ten assault force, an unyielding ever replacing wall. The remaining attack of worker swarms and sparkled against the Reaper's shields. The final Rachni ships collided against the barriers becoming nothing more than a dust against their hull. The Reapers resumed their course like the their last losses were of no concern to them. The mass relay sparked the blue blast of energy and the Reapers proceeded to the next area of resistance.

* * *

Wrex sat on the flagship of his new krogan flagship, looking over the expanse of the newly and recently unified krogan empire fleet that the council had hesitantly built for them. The designs were old and the weapons were even older, but the ships were still outfitted with what Wrex had asked for, breaching spires.

He tapped his fingers together as the geth platform stared out blankly beside him. The wait and silence of the ship made Wrex tap his fingers faster as he anxiously waited for the distress call to be sent to the "standing radio" that the council had given to him. Only thirty seconds passed before Wrex buried his head in one of his hands, his heart excited to see the new battle, a new enemy worth his time.

The geth platform clicked and whirled slightly before it turned to Wrex. The outer flaps of its head twitched slightly before its metallic voice filled the room.

"Artemis Tau defenses have been breached. Arrive of Old Machines imminent."

Wrex smiled slightly from the news and pounded his fists together.

"Let's see what these tin cans are capable of…" Wrex growled to himself.

The fleet started their engines and charged their weapons for the coming battle. Wrex stared at his display of the mass relay, waiting for the large, looming figures to launch themselves into his domain. A rush of blood and a quick beat of his heart caused his pupils to dilate slightly as the first of the Reaper ships came into view, almost immediately sweeping its lasers across one of the flanks, grazing two ships, but slicing another in half.

"Move! Fire at will!" Wrex shouted over the intercom that he had added to his entire fleet. A roar of approval followed his voice as the krogan warships blasted and curved around the Reaper attacks. The battle, at first, showed no signs of victory, the krogan fleet taking moderate losses with not a scratch on any of the Reapers.

Wrex grunted at the sight, but a smile stretched across his scarred face as he saw a Reaper's shield fall from heavy abuse from a large section of the fleet, and a series of drop ships smash into the sides, releasing the fatal disease of a krogan army. Only three drop ships landed on the first Reaper, but Wrex grinned at the sight as his krogan forces slowly destroyed the Reaper from the inside. He turned his attention back to his display of the mass relay to see five more enter the region. He grunted at the sight, but he never felt afraid of what lay before him. He achieved what all krogans had wanted to achieve, a fight worth fighting.

Krogan ships exploded around him as the frequency of the laser attacks began to increase as another group of Reapers entered. He fired the main cannon of his flagship into one of the weakened ships, searing through the weakened shields and savagely burning through the hull.

"You are incapable of understanding our intentions." came a low and metallic voice.

Wrex smiled at the message, a sign of weakness. He pressed a side button on his main computer and watched as a swarm of smaller fighters unhinged themselves from outside of his ship. The krogan carrier flagship filled the air with a swarm of krogan fighters whose attacks were weak, but their numbers quickly drew the attention away from the main forces that continued a non-stop onslaught of fighting without letting up.

Wrex laughed heartily when he saw from his viewport one of the battleships, broken in pieces and unable to fly anymore, charge its cannons again and fire into the Reaper that quickly smashed it to a crinkled piece of metal. Wrex felt sympathy for his people, but he knew that they were showing a bravery that would make the old krogans from the Rachni Wars look tame. He laughed louder, drawing the attention of the nearby krogan crewmembers who stared at him only momentarily before they themselves began to chortle and guffaw at the battle.

An adrenaline boost permeated the room as the laughs grew and the battle continued without an end in sight. Wrex's had been severely damaged, but they marched onwards and resolute. No one turned back and no one surrendered. The roars of victory and triumph that echoed over the open communication links made the imminent defeat feel like a victory.

Wrex turned his ship to the mass relay and gunned the engines. He listened to the ever falling yells of his comrades as they fell. A rear view display showed that the Reapers were only down to five from the ten that they had sent, but Wrex could care less. The ship vanished and reappeared in a new quadrant with an even large krogan fleet awaiting his command. He wasn't going to lose this fight, and he wasn't going to simply be a martyr to his people when they needed him to be their leader.

The new wave of krogans yelled through the open links, echoing their steadfast readiness and determination for the coming battle. He felt pride rise in his chest as he listened to the booming calls of the entire krogan army calling his name. His ship turned back to the mass relay, and the finger tapping resumed instinctually, but the excitement was now in play.

* * *

The Illusive Man's small yet powerful fleet, slowly inched their way around the galaxy. The Reapers that happened to attempt to capture him were quickly disposed of without much effort. A small glow and a drag on his cigarette were the only means of knowing that someone existed inside the confines of the large ship. Tapping the cigarette out, The Illusive Man smiled to himself as he saw the destroyed corpses of Reapers float past his ship. Scourge of the galaxy or simply pushovers? He lit another cigarette and filled his lungs with the smoke. He held it slightly to feel its effects before he released it quickly into the air.

"You will not survive this…" came a voice from behind him.

"I don't think you have much room to speak Broker…" The Illusive Man addressed. The dark figure behind him smiling slyly from the sound of its name.

"Both of us know that this is the end of us… I have helped you try to make the galaxy a better place and you have not disappointed me though a few things… I would have changed." continued the Shadow Broker.

"You helped bring Shepard back to humanity and you helped supply my organization with funds necessary for the betterment of mankind, but I have always wondered something, Broker. Why?" argued The Illusive Man.

"'Why' is an excellent question to the means at which I have so changed this galaxy for this eventuality. I knew it would happen and I sparked the minds of humans to venture beyond Pluto, opening the possibilities to which you would integrate the Reaper's technology. I knew they would come after you… I have been around you since your first evolutionary steps. Like a mother to the her child, I was proud of the growth and development, but disappointed in the set backs, but the result was achieved nonetheless. We will die for the life that will live through this darkness…" preached the Broker.

"How does that answer my question?" complained The Illusive Man.

"It doesn't…" cackled the Broker before he wisped into the darkness again.

The Illusive Man shook his head at the Broker's words before he angrily breathed in another puff of cigarette smoke, his hand shaking slightly from a fear of absolution that the Broker had made all too real in his eyes, eyes that were not his own, eyes that had seen things that no eyes should ever see. Another destruction of another ship brightened his mood only slightly, but most merely echoed inside of his head that had became empty with thought and filled with a fear that he had not known for most of his life. Another drag. He patted the cigarette ash out on the side of the tray and rested his hand over it.

Staring at the subtle glow of the cigarette with the trail of fragile ash was symbiotic to the time he was living. He breathed out slowly as he looked around the dark room of his dreadnought cabin. Thinking. Wondering. Fearful of the future. The soft glow from his cigarette managed to give enough light to show the contours of the room. Sloping panels and a cascading pillar followed with overhanging wires and ornaments that served almost no purpose but to appease him.

He looked around once more as his eyes brightened the room for only him. A single door led into his room, a single entrance, a single exit. He wanted to fume about the Broker's words more, but he knew that the Broker was never wrong. The muscles on his forehead tightened as the thoughts angrily swam through his head. _You are going to die._

The Illusive Man shook his head angrily before he hit the edge of his cigarette off of his tray breaking the fragile ash tower that had formed at the end of it, broken like the world he was a part of, fragile like the ground that he treaded on, black like his heart. Angrily, he smashed the cigarette into the tray. He rested his head against his hand before he reached into his pocket and pulled another cigarette out.

"There will always be another…"


	86. Chapter 86: Assault on the Homefront

Shala stood on Rannoch, eyes drawn skyward. The dim glare from her visor blocked the bright orange sun, but she still instinctually raised her hand up to her forehead. She breathed out deeply as she lifted the young child higher up so that she could also watch the sky. The bright explosions and laser flashes filled the sky. A tear fell from her cheek as she looked down at her nieces daughter and back at the destruction above her.

"You better do something quick Commander Shepard… You too Tali'Zorah." Shala frowned.

The explosions and laser attacks quickly ended and the sky grew clear and silent. Shala stared at the sky in hoped that victory had been achieved. A dark hand appeared to reach toward the planets surface, blocking all light and choking the life of the planet. Shala turned the baby away from the sight and ran to the main complex of the colony. A small group of guards marched out and stood on the edges of the door, motioning their hands for everyone to get inside quick.

Shala pushed past the remaining guards that marched from the building. She looked back out the door to see the large claw smash into the ground where just moment before she had been looking at the sky. The rumble from the impact and a gust of air and dust blasted their way through the narrow doorway knocking Shala off balance, but she kept her footing.

She turned back to the doorway, heart almost beating out of her chest as she tried to breath, but the deafening silence encapsulated the air around her. Not a noise was made from any of the terrified quarian on-lookers that stared out the doorway where the guards stood, rigid and steadfast. From what Shala could see, the side panel of the large claw opened slightly and a flood of bodies were dropped onto the ground.

She buried the baby's head in her chest to block the horrific scene in front of her, but she herself jumped slightly when the bodies began to rise and walk towards the complex. Her breath quickened as she quickly turned to run deeper into the complex. She listened to the door close behind her and the dull slamming of the assault rifles opening fire. The lights dimmed slightly before they flared brightly. Shala ran past room after room of terrified quarians that had not joined the battle. She felt their fear fill the building, but she held the baby close to her.

* * *

The Normandy quickly came into view of Rannoch space. The quarian home world was covered in the parasitic tendrils of the Reapers. Shepard gripped the balcony tightly as his body protested to the sight wanting to yell out, break down, but his military training kept his face clear of emotion though his eyes screamed his shock and fear.

Other ships emerged from the mass relay with the Normandy, but they could barely be considered a fleet with their numbers. Most of the captains stared out at the number of Reaper ships that filled the space. They had no chance of living with these odds, but they kept the ships strong and their crew confident. A few members had tears pour from their faces as they stared angrily at the enemy that showed no mercy, an enemy that killed because it could.

The turian captain's mandibles clicked slightly from the sight, but the moment of shock quickly melted away as the heat of his rage broke through and he focused his entire attention on the fact that they were attack unarmed quarian colonists. He pounded the panel in front of him and growled his next orders.

"Bring those bastards down!" demanded the captain.

The crew happily obliged and charged the cannons firing everything they had on the foremost Reaper. The other ships followed quickly firing their own fury of anger and rage at the ship. The concentrated fire of every ship quickly ripped a hole through the shields and quickly broke through the ship completely hitting the ship on the other side of it, damaging it shields slightly. A few of the ships rose from the planet's surface and advanced upon the small group of ships that had survived the previous battles.

"Evasive maneuvers!" growled the turian captain.

The ship banked hard down just as a beam grazed their shields causing the ship to shake, but the resilience of the fire that now burned brightly inside each and every man in this group could not be killed by anything. The lasers quickly fired again, but the ship banked past the attack again sweeping its own lasers across the shields causing a bluish flare fill the space around it.

Shepard fired everything the Normandy could muster while maintaining enough energy to the engines to fly around and past the laser attacks that assault the ship. A few of the ships were quickly destroyed while others showed their experience with the Reaper's attack formations. Even with the rage burning in his eyes and fear burning in his heart, Shepard noticed a small disturbance beside him.

"What do you want?" Shepard glowered.

"I'm here for the future though I don't know if you will see it as I will not." laughed the Shadow Broker as he stepped past Shepard toward the glass viewport in front of him.

Shepard glared at the strange figure that had constantly drove a stake in his life at almost every moment of his life that he had with Tali. The Broker turned towards Shepard and smiled widely before he removed a small trinket from his pocket. He stepped towards Shepard, grabbing his hand, turning it and placing the trinket inside of it. He closed Shepard's hand around it, squeezing it tightly.

"Keep it safe." The Broker stated before he turned back to the glass and faded through it into space.

Joker stared at the semi-transparent body glide through him and out the window.

"I am seeing ghosts…" Joker shook his head as he quickly veered the ship from another catastrophic attack.

Shepard opened his hand slowly to see a delicate crystal trinket, carved and shaped into a beautiful arrangement. The sight instantly quelled any and all sense of fear and rage that he had at that moment. He spun what he believed to be fragile, but he found, by the way it felt in his hand, to be incredibly rigid and strong, even at its smallest point.

The rumble of the ship broke Shepard's attention away from the trinket and back at the display, the sight overwhelmingly grim, but strangely he felt something tell him that this battle was already won. He watched as three Reaper ships advanced on the Normandy location. Joker looked back at the commander, shaking slightly.

"Uh… commander… Commander! What do we do now?" Joker pleaded.

"Nothing…" Shepard heard himself say.

He looked around the place that he was standing, confused at his own words. Had he given up? Did the Broker make him give up with some kind of weapon or toxin or mind altering device? No…

Shepard looked at the display to see the tiny specs of glittering light flash around one of the oncoming Reapers. The tentacles turned almost instantly towards the other two Reapers sending a devastating attack through the first, disintegrating it at point blank range. The other Reaper turned to attack the rogue Reaper, but the first Reaper attacked again, shearing through its hull quickly.

Joker about fired at the rogue Reaper, seeing his chance to save the Normandy, but Shepard grabbed his arm before he could press the button.

"What are you doing commander? I have a shot!" stated Joker.

"It's on our side now…"

"What?" stammered Joker as he turned his chair back to the display to see the ship turn and attack the other ships.

Joker cheered along with the other crew members. Shepard watched the battle unfold; The Reapers versus the Shadow Broker who had somehow taken control the ship. A shot fired from one of the many Reaper ships broke through the ships lower end, severing tentacles and sensors, but the ships remaining weapons kept firing and destroying more ships. The last Reaper ship sheered the last of the claws off of the Broker's Reaper slave. Shepard watched as the ship ran headlong into the Reaper, setting their element zero cores bursting.

The resulting explosion shook the Normandy and calmed the space of all disturbance. Shepard stared at the sacrifice that had been made for him, another person lost to keep him and his family safe. Why? Shepard was about to order the ships into orbit around Rannoch when a distress signal was received that had been blocked by the Reaper's mass effect fields.

"If anyone can hear us, we need help, now!" gunshots are heard. "We are being overwhelmed by- Oh Keelah- their everywhere…" cried the voice. "Get up soldier! I said get-" a sharp yell followed along with the muffled noises of feet hording around the radio.

Shepard stared at the planet before he turned quickly to the elevator.

"Tali! Garrus! Grunt! Chakwas! Prepare to depart! Miranda! Jacob! Take command. Joker!" Shepard turned and smiled. "Be easy on her. You might need to defend our space for awhile." Joker smiled and nodded.

Rode the elevator down to the cargo bay where Tali and Grunt were already suited up and ready to go. A moment later, Garrus and Chakwas walked off the elevator and onto the awaiting shuttle.

The shuttle ride shook and rattled their bodies, but their faces stayed resolute. Tali had put her suit and visor back on for protection and breather technology for safety. Plus she felt safer inside her suit.

The engines slowly died down as the shuttle landed on the surface. The quickly opened revealing a wave of husks running towards a center structure. Shepard listened to small amount of arms fire coming from the defensive position and looked back at his team.

"We have to hurry! They don't have much time!" Shepard shouted.

The team quickly ran down the hill, their weapons poised at the stray husks that ran over the hillsides. Grunt took point, firing precision shots into the husks that ran at him. Tali and Garrus ran on the flanks behind Grunt, hitting any other husks while Shepard took the rear protecting Chakwas who ran inside the group. They quickly made their way down the hill and pushed their way through the crossfire of the quarian defenses. The acting quarian captain pointed and shouted for his men to clear a path for them.

Shepard and the team took the chance and sprinted down the small opening that they had produced. They jumped the barricade that the quarians had taken refuge behind. The acting captain began to brief Shepard of the situation.

"We're being torn apart by these monsters!" stammered the young quarian.

They ducked quickly when the thunderous blasts of a scion attack made their way up along the barrier, sending a splash of acid nipping at their shoulders.

"I don't think we are going to make it." cried the quarian.

"Keep yourself together! We will make it through this." Shepard championed to the surrounding quarians. "We can do this!"

Even Tali who had been taking blind pot shots over the cover felt inspired by her husbands words. She smiled wide as she felt her heart fill with steel and warmth. She rose just in time to blast a husk square in the face causing a shower of gore to blast into the crowd of husks. She ducked from another scion attack.

Grunt rose from his position and jumped the barricade, charging straight into the husk horde. He batted a few away with his head before he grabbed one's head swinging it around into other husks. He smashed the butt of his shotgun against another husk's head causing its skull to crack and buckle. One husk managed to swipe its sharp claws against his back, but it merely scratched it.

He laughed with joy as he unloaded a single round into four husks, sending them flailing to the ground in a crumpled gory mess. Garrus unloaded round after high-powered round into the armored scions that slowly marched toward their location. The sniper eventually slashed through the armor, spilling a vile, black liquid onto the ground. He laughed to himself as he took aim on another scion that had made its way up the hill. The shot was strong enough to knock it backwards down the hill it had just made it up.

Chakwas stood over a bleeding quarian that writhed and moaned in pain at the long parallel cuts that stretched across his midsection. Chakwas hated treating quarians for anything because their odds of living through any attack that punctured their suit especially to this degree were almost guaranteed dead within the week, but she still pumped antibiotics and painkillers into the hurt quarians around her, the sweat dripped from her brow, but she was too busy to wipe it off.

Shepard fired his assault rifle into the heads of the never ending swarm of husks that continuously poured around the buildings and over the hill tops. He enjoyed taking the battle into his own hands instead of watching the ship do the fighting, but he was now vulnerable against most attacks. He fired another round into an unlucky husk's head causing a sickening pop noise to fill the gunfire filled air. Shepard looked up momentarily to see the bright streaks of the space battle that had just started. He looked back in time to blow another husk away before he looked up again to see a dark shape fall towards the planet's surface.

The claw scraped into the ground, its side panels opening. A fluttering noise filled the air as a swarm of collectors flew out from the ship. One exploded with energy and was filled with glowing cracks, its weapon instantly collapsing into dust from the surge.

"This is not the end Shepard." Harbinger echoed through the gunfire as he marched forward relentlessly.


	87. Chapter 87: To Memories

A/N to answer your question Verge, I am excited to see at the same time that I am afraid of seeing what or who it will be because whatever it is, it could ruin how I had depicted him which just makes me see dense in the matter since most people don't pay attention to the date that stories are written. If they actually take my idea and make him the way that I depict him, I will be surprised and incredibly impressed, but I doubt such an event happening.

* * *

Shala ran into the emptiest of the rooms which was still severely overcrowded with frightened quarians that held small arms and tools as weapons. Shala sat in the corner and rocked the baby to stop it from crying. A loud thud against the wall behind her made her jump, but she tried to calm herself, the baby, and the others in the room by starting a quarian hymn that her mother had taught her. She started with a hum as she blocked the noises around her. The humming brought the words and the words brought the spirit of the song.

The other quarians stopped shaking and staring at the door, their gaze slowly falling Shala who continued the song. A few of the other quarians joined in at the points that they were taught others hummed the tune. They still jumped at the thuds and crashes against the doors and walls, but the fear melted from them. They slowly rose and held their combination of small arms and makeshift weapons in front of them prepared for the breakthrough.

* * *

With the collectors now joining the fight, Grunt quickly charged back to the cover where a fury of shells hit the wall where he had just been standing. He grunted at the changing tide of the battle as he reloaded his shotgun with fresh shells. The krogan glanced quickly over to Tali who held both her shotgun and knife together in a strong close-quarter stance.

Shepard stood briefly to fire another series of rounds into the collectors, but his main focus was the glowing collector that walked angrily towards him. He fired at the juggernaught, but the boosted strength and power of the barriers blocked most of the damage. Shepard managed to pull his heavy pistol out just as Harbinger made it to the barricade.

Shepard managed one shot into the shoulder of the drone causing it to disintegrate, but the body felt no pain and barely reacted to the damage. It grabbed him with its other hand, lifting him by his neck and throwing him against the wall of the complex.

"Shepard!" Tali screamed as she slammed the shotgun closed around another shell. She quickly ran at the glowing foe, stabbing the knife straight into the collector's eye causing a wave of light and energy searing up the blade. She cringed from the heat that permeated quickly into her suit before she managed to pull it out revealing the glowing hole.

"Quarian immune system weak and fragile." Harbinger muttered as he formed a strong fireball into his hand.

Tali stabbed the barrel of the shotgun into the hole. "Who's fragile now?" She sheared the head clean off sending a shower of radiant energy falling to the ground as the body became limp, slowly fading into ash. Tali stood in the soot cloud feeling the adrenaline finish pumping through her system. A small moan brought her quickly to reality again.

"Shepard!" She ran over to him as he slowly tried to sit up. He grabbed his bruised ribs and wiped the blood from his cracked lip.

She quickly put herself under his shoulder and helped him to his feet. She stared at him, worried and concerned for his well-being, but he flashed her a slight smile to put her mind at ease. He drew his eyes to the sky to see another claw rake forwards and smash into the ground, another wave of collectors added to the horde of husks that continuously poured over the hillsides in every direction.

"You will feel pain Shepard… Your species will fall to our will. Your species will…" the voice crackled out quickly. Tali leaned Shepard against the barricade allowing him to see the Reaper clearly. He watched as the shields flared and flickered as a million pin pricks covered its entire surface.

"W-w-we are a-assuming direct c-c-c-control over this platform." Harbinger and the Shadow Broker voices chimed in unison.

The ship jerked slightly before the claws lifted from the surface and scraped past the remaining collectors taking a large number of husks at once. The ship rose quickly back into space where the Normandy and the remaining vessels desperately dodged the onslaught of Reaper vessels.

A surviving scion fired its last shot before Garrus skillfully put it down, but the damage was soon revealed as a pained cry rang out. Shepard looked over to see Chakwas hunched over the quarian that she had thrown herself on to block the attack; the blue plasma burned into her back. A rush of adrenaline tore Shepard to his feet as he ran over to her body. He grabbed her shoulder, turning her over, and checking her pulse.

He caught the final pulses of her heart before her final breath released from her lungs. Shepard couldn't feel anything anymore as another member of his team fell to the Reapers. He had lost his chief medical officer for her act of bravery. He lowered his head for her and felt the pain of losing her. The memories flooded, reminded, and hurt him dearly, but it fueled his body to continue. Turning back to the battle, Shepard fired his heavy pistol into the final husks.

* * *

Shala and the rest of the quarians sat in silence as they heard the gunfire slowly cease. She feared the worst and backed behind the group of quarians that had made their way into the hallway of the main door. The listened to the door jerk and creak as the locks were quickly disengaged. Everyone held their breaths as the door slide open, sending a flood of light into the hallway. A shadowy figure limped into the hallway and opened a side panel. The lights and power were quickly restored revealing a bruised and battered Shepard. Tali walked in directly behind him, offering her shoulder again for him to rest on.

He limped past the shocked and relieved quarians that watched him enter the facility. He nodded to each of them, smiling weakly but respectfully. Being almost five feet from her, Shepard looked at Shala and the baby she held. Tali looked at the baby too, hurt, relieved, and exhausted.

"Commander…" Shala looked at him "Tali'Zorah…" she nodded gratefully.

She walked the final steps toward them, holding the baby close enough to keep her safe, but holding her far enough away in case Tali or Shepard wished to hold her. Tali reached out shakily and wrapped her gentle arms around her daughter, feeling the weight and love that emanated from the life she held. The baby looked at her mother and smiled, stretching her small hands outward so that she could hug her. Tali wished she could stay here and defend the people she had worked so hard for, but she knew that the battles and killings were still spread over the entire galaxy. She lifted her child higher so that her hands could playfully smudge and smear the visor with her dirty hands.

Tali giggled as she wiped the streak of dirt from the baby's face. "Born in chaos…" she whispered to her.

Shepard leaned in and looked at the baby himself, a gentle smile, a sense of calm, serenity, spread through his pained body as he saw that through the destruction and massacre of the galaxy, races still survived. He walked to Shala's side and edged her into one of the rooms to speak in private.

Shala stared at the battered commander, worried, calm, respectful. She folded her hands, nervous, yet strangely calm. His words rang through her audio filters and echoed through her helmet. The words were sincere and filled with pain and hurt. She knew what he was saying, what he was implying, and how she was to do the job given to her, but his exact words blurred in her mind. She believed that her heart never beat once as he talked to her, lips moving, sound echoing, words unclear, meaning perfect.

Shepard patted his hand on her shoulder and said a small quarian prayer of safety to her with his head dropped. Shala was astounded at the perfection of his words and sounds. She placed her hand on his shoulder and repeated the same to him. He left before she could say good bye. Everyone was gone by the time she left the room. Another quarian handed her the baby that had been painfully given to them. Tali's aunt walked from the building into the opening of dead. A few quarians laid motionless in the field while a few others sat still against the building turning their heads to look at their domestic leader.

She turned her attention back to the sky to see the fireworks had ended and the battle had ceased. She turned back to return to the building when she saw a print of a body that had been moved. She turned back to the sky and nodded to where she guessed the Normandy sat in orbit.

* * *

Zaeed stared out of his ship at the blank space in front of him. He had been getting reports of the losses, whole star systems, sections of the galaxy going dark, and now he stood as one of the last walls of defense. He knew he commanded the largest semi-unified, ragtag group of mercenaries, ranging from the Eclipse and Blood Pack to any volunteers of free lancing mercenaries.

He had received word from Shepard, who he was amazed was still alive for lasting so long on the front lines, that the weapon had failed and the virus was scrapped. The veteran mercenary quickly disseminated the information to the surrounding vessels. He cracked his neck and rubbed the scar on his eye as he felt the sweat drip from his forehead.

"Right you dogs. I guess I need to give you some inspiration speech of optimism or some garbage… but I can't bring myself to lie to ya. We are going to most likely die fighting at this location, but we would be killed anyways even if we didn't stand and fight. Hopefully all of you have come to terms with dying. So lets do this…" Zaeed stared back out his display. He knew his speech was the worst inspirational speech in the history of anywhere, but he wasn't the guy to inspire, he was the guy to keep everyone alive.

Some of the crewmembers looked at each other nervously, unsure of their captain and leader, but none of them would jump out of line with that sparkling shotgun sitting on his back. They continued their work, but they shared a common idea, an idea of irrational fear. None of them wanted to be there, and none of them wanted to die, but they knew just as Zaeed had pounded into the skulls almost every waking moment of their lives that they would die regardless, and what better way of dying than by trying to save the galaxy. A hero if they won, and if they lost… well… no one would be the wiser would they?

A few of the other captains declared their hate of this plan, but the krogan captains appeared to be absolutely thrilled by Zaeed words. Some even gave a roar of approve of which Zaeed ignored along with the complaining. A ship blasted through the mass relay, a sleek, black ship with large words on the side.

"Commander John Shepard. I'm amazed that you haven't had your guts turned to pulp." Zaeed teased.

"We have a secret weapon emerging right behind us. No one fire on it, it's friendly."

At first, Zaeed had no clue what the commander was talking about until the large dark shape of a Reaper ship came into view. The sight drew the breath from his lungs at such an intimidating vessel. He quickly looked down at the communication links that had been closed and quickly opened them and shouted.

"None of you bastards better fire on that ship! It's friendly."

"How do you know that?" demanded a rather angry krogan captain.

"Commander Shepard told me…" Zaeed teased knowing the hate that was shared with the entire mercenary groups.

"Shepard?" repeated the krogan.

"The one and stubborn only…" mused the old mercenary.

The entire network started growling and moaning with a collective hatred to the commander that foiled and killed members of each and every group. Even some of the freelancers moaned at the news, but Zaeed knew they were clueless to the destruction and mayhem that his old contracted captain.

"You fiends are still under my command! Shepard is here to simply show us how its done…"

"We don't need someone to show us how its done…" argued an Eclipse mercenary, biting with sarcasm.

"As you can see. Shepard has already killed a few of those monsters and has even taken was as a prisoner or ally or whatever. What have you done?" Zaeed bit back.

Silenced followed, Zaeed's favorite response to his responses, a sign of victory. He crossed his arms and looked back at the mass relay as a few stragglers came through and joined their fleet.

* * *

Shepard took the time to walk down to med-bay, dark and quiet. He half expected to see the cheerful smile of Chakwas flash from her chair as she turned to greet him, but the chair was empty. He walked over to the shape hidden under a veil, out of sight, but never out of mind. She had saved countless lives and had saved both his and Tali's life at one time or another, and now she was dead. He walked to her desk and reached under it grabbing the sleek bottle that sat under it. He grabbed two shot glasses and poured the last of the Serrice Ice Brandy. He held one of the cups to the body laying in the room with him.

"To memories." he dumped the brandy into his mouth. He placed the other by her bed and left the room.


	88. Chapter 88: Blight of the Mind

The loss of Chakwas hit Shepard harder than when he had lost Liara. He didn't know why the pain was more intense since his visits to the med-bay were brief. He had come to know Chakwas as a seasoned crewmember and as a good person, but the thought of losing her was almost nonexistent. She scratched his head as he tried to think of something appropriate and fitting to say at her funeral.

He stood over her casket, draped in Alliance colors. He stared thoughtfully down at the still casket, almost expecting it to open and for her to laugh as if this was all a joke, but no one came out. No one laughed. The wait for the Reapers to break through the next line allowed them to perform this service, and either way, Shepard would have done it during a battle, just to give her his respects.

Tali stood next to Shepard as his support, but the longer she stood by the coffin, the more she felt depressed and lost. She had worn her suit for the occasion so that if she happened to cry no one could see her, she didn't want to break the crew down like that.

Shepard rested his arms on the make-shift podium that had been set up at the airlock. He looked at the ground as he fumbled a few ideas in his head. With a final breath, he raised his head, looking at the crew members that could make it to the funeral. He opened his mouth to speak when the door at the end of the room opened revealing a bent figure, limping hurriedly into the room.

"Joker…" Shepard whispered just loud enough for everyone in the room to just hear.

Joker's face was hurt beyond all comparison. He had probably come to know Chakwas the best from the entire crew since he regularly received treatments from her. He slowly leaned himself against Garrus who helped him stand in the crowd.

"I know that most of you have not been around Chakwas long enough to the know the impact of this loss." Shepard started, taking another long breath. "But she came onto the Normandy searching for exotic adventures. She told me once, after the first Normandy was destroyed that… she couldn't stand doing her job on the surface of planets, with her feet on solid ground. She needed the roar of engines, the tiny changes in gravity from the ship turning, but she also needed something else. She needed to help the people she cared for…" Shepard looked around the room, but he gave a knowing glance at Joker who stared at him, hurt.

"She went above and beyond her regular duty as senior medical officer. She became something more. She became a friend. She became family." Shepard's hand shook slightly as his nerves buckled. He shook it off quickly and regained the strength in his voice. "She represented the heart and the soul of what it means to serve on this ship. This is why we have come to honor Doctor Chakwas. IF anyone has any parting words to say before we finish the funeral, please speak now."

Joker walked forwards, but he shook his head. He walked up the few stairs to the casket, resting his hands on the cloth covering. He spoke softly into the casket, too soft for Shepard to hear. Shepard watched as when he straightened out again, a flood of tears had begun to drip from his eyes. He breathed in the mucus that had formed in his noise and wiped his eyes as he made his way to the door. Garrus offered to help him, but he brushed him off.

"I'm fine…" He said through the sadness. He limped out the door and back to his chair.

The sight of Joker was almost harder to bear than losing Chakwas, seeing him broken mentally along with being physically weakened. Shepard lowered his head slowly as he walked over to the panel and pressed the button. The casket slowly made its way along the platform and out into the airlock that closed behind it. He couldn't bring himself to look out the small viewport, instead he listened to the hiss of air as the casket jettisoned from the ship. Shepard's heart sank, but his duty to his crew overwhelmed his feelings. He walked out of the room, his head held high.

Wrex's ship stood at the foremost battalion of the krogan fleets. He knew that every krogan was going to give their lives on this day, not for the safety of the galaxy, but simply for the trophy of victory. He smiled to himself as the thoughts of the krogan psyche swam in his head, the reason they held the most power against the Reapers. He cracked his neck as the bluish flicker from the mass relay signified the commencement of the battle.

A large dark shape, almost completely invisible from the lack of nearby stars, emerged from the relay, almost instantly firing its lasers into the fleet. Wrex grunted at the quick losses.

"Fire at will!" Wrex growled into the intercom.

The broadcast was quickly received by every ship who quickly and enthusiastically followed the orders. The ships quickly spread their forces around the sector of space, seizing every and all flanks, quickly making their passes around the shape, quickly dropping its shields. The rest of the battle ended with a massacre of the lone Reaper.

Wrex looked at the monitor, hopeful that more would come, but a satisfied look showed his joy that not more krogans had fallen on that attack, but nothing came through, nothing was received. He glanced at the geth platform that Shepard had put on his ship, it stared thoughtfully at the ground.

"Anything we should know about tin can?" Wrex demanded of the piece of junk.

It turned to him quickly and nonchalantly answered.

"Shepard Commander's platform has relayed a distress signal from Fleet F. Their position is being overwhelmed by the old machines."

Wrex growled at the machine in front of him and slammed the panel in front of him.

"Attention crew and fleet. We have been made a fool of by the Reapers. They sent a single distraction to keep us away from the real fight." Wrex squeezed his fist together. "But we won't let them make a fool of us! Every ship form up! Head out to Fleet F.'s position." He turned the intercom off and looked at his monitors. "Hang in their Shepard…"

The sudden and surprise attack of the Reaper's on Shepard's front almost made him fall over as Joker's instincts and quick reflexes quickly turned the ship a full ninety degrees in a full thrust, sending some of the crew falling off of their chairs and onto the floor. The veins on Joker's neck stretched and strained as the g-force stabilizers of the ship strained to hold the liquids inside everyone's body. Eventually the ship leveled off and launched straight towards the group of three Reapers that held a strong defensive triangle that slowly moved in through the battlefield.

The Shadow Broker managed to fire a few rounds of his Reaper ship into the creeping defensive line, but from the quick maneuvers that he maintained, most of the power was lost in space behind his target. The ships around Shepard exploded as Joker quickly dropped the ship downwards while keeping the ship level to keep the crosshairs on the defensive lines.

A superheated blast erupted from the front of the Normandy hitting square on the closest Reaper. He almost had time to fire another shot when the triangle turned, keeping the damaged Reaper away from the brunt of the attacks.

"Their learning!" Shepard angrily yelled as he pulled himself up using Joker's chair.

Joker didn't have time to respond as he quickly transferred all power to the engines, turning the ship sharply again, bringing the nose sharply to away from a high concentration of energy that would have ripped the very spot that Joker was sitting. He managed to take another long breath before he pumped through the controls of the Normandy. Shepard stared out of the viewport, the bursts of light from the exploding ships around him almost blinded him. Another shot grazed the Normandy only slightly, but it lowered the shield.

"Shields are at zero percent. Charging." EDI's voice rang over the intercom.

Shepard was about to radio the engineering bay when everything around him when silent, the ships extreme g-forces changes ceased. He looked around, confused at the change. No one was aboard. He turned back to Joker's chair and found that it was empty. He hit the intercom button.

"Tali! Tali! You there?" Shepard nervously pleaded into the it. He was answered with an echo of his own voice. He looked out the view port to see one of the Normandy's transport ships flying out from the ship, straight towards an incoming Reaper ship.

He quickly opened a link to the ship and yelled at it, out of fear and confusion.

"Who is this? Who am I talking to?"

Silence for only a brief second before a hurt voice came on the other side. "I'm sorry Shepard… I have to do this… I have to keep you safe…" Tali almost cried through the intercom.

Shepard's heart sank to a level that it had never sunk before. His voice shivered as he tried to talk to her.

"T-Tali… You don't have to do this. You don't have to sacrifice yourself like this… okay?" Shepard tried to comfort her.

He heard her breath in a ragged breath and pause to wipe her tears or bolster her nerves, he didn't know which. "I'm sorry…" She said softly before she terminated the link.

"Tali…? Tali? Tali! No! Tali! Answer me!" Silence. "Tali please!" Shepard felt his heart beat faster as he tried to reach out with his soul and grab her, pick her to safety, but he watched as the ship erupted in a blinding explosion.

Shepard blocked his eyes as he felt the hot tears begin to pour from his eyes. He looked quickly back up when the explosion had passed, a destroyed Reaper floated in front of him, the other ship was completely gone. The link was still open.

"Tali?" Shepard asked hopefully.

Nothing at all. His hand quivered as he dropped to the floor, on the verge of completely losing his grip on his emotions when a dark shape stood on the ship beside him. It smiled at him, knowingly. It pointed to its neck before it backed into the creeping darkness that slowly consumed the ship.

Shepard looked down to see the crystal necklace that the Broker had given him. He grabbed it, but one of the small edges broke. His mind instantly snapped at the false reality around him, and quickly felt the g-force pulls take his body again.

"Shepard!" Joker yelled. "I don't know how much more she can take!"

Shepard looked up at the screen to see that they had killed the original three Reapers that had made the triangle, but, to his dismay, he saw that other Reapers had replaced each one when they had fallen, keeping the dreadnaught alive. He was about to signal a retreat when a flood of small ships burst from the mass relay, all firing their missiles and lasers. The three ships were quickly overwhelmed as the entire krogan empire bore their entire strength into that concentrated area.

The triangle had been lost and their strategy had been thwarted, but still they continued to attack and massacre ships. The added krogan fleet quickly destroyed the series of Reapers. A victorious roar echoed over the links. Shepard smiled to himself before he wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"That was too close…" He made his leave to the galaxy map to check the alerts.

They were still numerous, but some of the alerts have stopped, but Shepard assumed that everyone from those sectors were dead or would be dead in the time to come. The fleet slowly took note of their losses and refortified the area.

"What was with the moment of silence commander? Were you praying?" Joker egged.

Shepard stood awkwardly as he thought about his brush with the Reaper indoctrination. The effects felt more extreme than that of the Shadow Broker's and The Illusive Man's indoctrination. He remembered back to what felt like a dream, slowly sifting through his mind, fading from view. He could barely remember the contents, like they were being wiped from his memory.

"Nothing Joker… something just caught my mind…" he guessed.

He made his way to the elevator and stepped inside. He didn't have a chance to press any button before the elevator dropped further into the ship. Shepard was too lost in his mind to think nothing of it; he preferred the time to think. The elevator stopped at the next floor, Shepard didn't even look up.

"So how are we this fine day commander." A familiar, but impossible voice asked him.

Shepard quickly looked up to see the soft face of Doctor Chakwas staring at him. His heart stood still, a ghost. He reached out, he felt her.

"But that's impossible…" Shepard whispered to himself.

Chakwas looked at him, confused and worried.

"What's wrong commander? You look like you've seen a ghost."

Shepard quickly reached down to the crystal necklace, the edges broke again, and the g-forces resumed again. He breathed deeply as he looked around at the battle, that he had just seen. The human commander quickly reached down and grabbed the crystal on his neck. It stayed together.

"I don't know how much more of this we can take!" Joker exclaimed.

Shepard looked up just in time to see the flicker of the mass relay activating, a fury of krogan ships filled the space. They fired quickly at the Reapers, but the rounds barely made an impact on the shields. They managed to fire another salvo of missiles that managed to break apart another Reaper. The Normandy fired another fury of its cannons, taking out another dark shape.

Shepard's heart uplifted at the sight, his hand still squeezing the crystal that didn't break. The battle still raged, but the tides had been turned quickly and the battle was theirs. Shepard watched as the last of the Reaper's assault ships exploded in front of him. A triumphant yell echoed over the intercoms, trumpeting their glory. Shepard felt his heart rise more as the morale of the second largest left fleet in the galaxy held its ground.

A red alert on the galaxy map broke the victory dances.

"Commander Shepard?" hailed the turian commander that had managed to survive alongside the Normandy throughout its fights. "What are your next orders?"

He had never noticed before but the voice was familiar to him.

"Sidonis? Is that you?" Shepard almost laughed into the radio.

"You got me Shepard, and I have to say… I'm impressed with your leadership. I see why Garrus looks up to you." Sidonis enthused.

"We have another contact…" Shepard's tone became mournful almost instantly. "They are heading for Earth."


	89. Chapter 89: Desire of Shadows

The fleet still had time to regain their formations and begin their moveable wall to the Earth's defense. Shepard sat in his cabin, grabbing at the necklace every few seconds, fearing the false realities that threatened to drive him insane. He barely registered the beep of the door and the soft footfalls of the person entering. He stared at the blank screen, the blank document that he wished to send to someone, but he had lost track of who and what he was going to say. Even at a whisper, the voice made him jump.

"Shepard…?" Tali hesitated.

Shepard turned around, fumbling with his necklace, his mind burning from the lack of sleep. Just the sight of her shadowy figure overlapping the soft blue glow of the fish tank light systems made his mind cool and his muscles calm. He felt that he hadn't simply seen false realities, but possible realities in his future. He could see the sacrifices the crew would give him. He knew that he would sacrifice his life in a heart beat at the same time that Tali would sacrifice hers. The idea was noble, but he knew the outcome of the sacrifices.

"What is it Tali…?" Shepard fidgeted.

She lifted him from his chair, holding him up, slowly guiding his body to his bed. By the time he had hit the edge of his bed, he found his body collapsing onto the bed. He didn't fall asleep instantly, but he let the softness of the bed and the pillows soothe his mind and his spirit. He had seen more death in this last week of fighting than he had seen in his entire life, and it was beginning to take its toll on him. His arms reached up and squeezed the pillow into his eyes, the slight coolness of the pillows calmed his hot eyes.

Tali sat on the bed beside him, watching his body become relaxed, spreading further out onto the bed. She rested her hand on his back and smiled at her commander and husband. Just as she was about to stand, she caught a glance of something shimmer on Shepard's neck. She looked closer at the small crystalline object that he had wrapped around his neck. With much care to not wake him, Tali slid the necklace from his neck and looked at the unique structure of the crystal shapes.

She spun it slowly in her hands wondering how Shepard had come to acquire this crystal. One of the edges poked her exposed hand causing her gasp and jump, sending the crystal falling to the ground. A spark of panic flickered into her eyes as she turned her head away from what would be a horrible mess and one of the biggest mistakes of her life. She heard the collision, but she didn't hear anything else hit the ground, no fragments, no shrapnel. She managed to crack one of her eyes and look at the completely solid crystal that sat innocently on the ground.

"Keelah…" Tali whispered.

She bent down to the strange crystal and examined it closer. Thin needle-like spires jutted from the strong central core, yet, to Tali's amazement, they would not break. She scanned it with her Omni-tool and almost felt herself jump off the bed as the realization of the object in question hit her. She slowly lowered the crystal onto Shepard's nightstand and left the room with her findings. She had to speak with Mordin.

* * *

_The soft sigh of the ocean soothed Shepard's ears as he became aware of the strange setting that he had fallen into. He looked around at the familiar setting of his Rannoch home, but he knew he was sitting on the beach that sat at the bottom of the slowly sloping hillside. Slowly he became aware of the soft dimming of the sunglasses that sat in front of his eyes. He thought about taking them off, but another shower of cool ocean water put his mind at ease. His breathing quickly matched that of the oceans sighing._

_He leaned back in his chair when a hand ran across Shepard's shoulder and down his chest. He cracked an eye to see Tali, smiling in her robes, slowly dropping her hood and taking a seat beside him._

"_How are we doing today?" Tali inquired._

"_How are we doing today?" Shepard repeated._

_Tali smiled and looked back into the bright sun, at the glittering waves. She blocked the sun with her hand, taking a deep breath in._

"_Perfect." She sang._

_Shepard smiled at the response and matched his whisper to that of the wind. He listened to the wind, listening to it echo his words and his satisfaction. Tali stared at him and laughed at how satisfied he looked._

"_What are you laughing at?" Shepard demanded humorously._

"_Nothing." Tali denied through her teeth._

"_What?" Shepard asked seeing through her rouse._

"_Nothing!" Tali laughed._

"_Don't make me…"_

"_What?" Tali giggled._

_Shepard quickly rolled from his chair and tried to get his hands on her, but she had seen his plan and had managed to slip through his grasp. He quickly stood and ran after her, through the flowery grassland that covered most of the surface. Tali laughed as the distance between her and her pursuer quickly closed. Shepard grabbed her sides and tickled her relentlessly causing her to fall into the long grass, laughing._

_The grass only tickled both of them, causing an echoing shower of laughter coming from the grass. Tali stared up at Shepard after he was done, her eyes shifting lovingly between both of her husband's eyes, watching, observing, falling in love all over again. Shepard followed her motions, causing his eyes to do the same thing. He rolled off of her and set his body beside hers, staring up at the sky. The orange glow that the star cast still allowed glimmers of stars and satellites to be seen at this time of day._

_The lovers crossed their arms above their heads for support and watched the flickering of a passing satellite. Shepard would point and laugh as Tali would point beside his hand at another sparkle, their hands touching and lowering as one. The quarian and human lovers followed their hands as they dropped until they met each other's eyes again. They both slide closer to each other, feeling each other's breath._

_Touching was quickly grew from the closeness, their hands touching each other's faces and Tali's legs rubbing the side of Shepard's body. Shepard felt the relaxation spread through his body, as he lowered another level, his muscles becoming completely pliable and easy to move. Some grass hit him in the face as he moved his arm from it. He spit the grass out of his mouth. Tali rolled on the ground laughing at Shepard's anti-romantic moves._

_He shook his head to move the grass from his face. He could just see Tali laying in front of him, her head propped onto her hands, her feet, sticking up behind her. He crawled through the brush and the grass until it opened up to the small recess where she stared at him lovingly. He crawled slowly toward her, their hands slowly coming together again, their heads softly pressing against one another's. They slowly lifted both of their heads allowing their lips to softly touch each other, reaching out to hold each other. _

_The reunion came quickly and they slowly felt each other's warmth, only breaking to breath. Their breaths became heavier as the kissing became quicker and deeper. Tali swayed her legs back and forth before their strong attraction quickly died down and they resumed staring at the sky, together. Shepard wondered how the universe was going without his services, but the thoughts quickly faded._

_Shepard could hear laughing just over the hill, a laugh that he remembered, remembered from another time, but he couldn't remember when. He propped himself up to see over the tall grass to the top of the hill, the grass swayed in front of him, blocking his view. He pushed himself up completely to see a sprawled village in front of him, dark shapes doing daily chores._

_A caught a hint of movement at the edge of his vision. It had crested the hill and had made its way behind him. He crouched down into the grass and slowly walked down the hill. He could hear the movement, only a few feet from him. He reached out with his hands and grabbed the small creature that squealed with excitement. Shepard lifted his kid up and around before he hugged her tightly, making exaggerated noises._

_The child pushed against his chest to be let down, but the smile on her face told how much she had enjoyed her father's small ride and obnoxious behavior. Tali rose from the grass and walked towards the duo. The child caught sight of her mother coming towards her and charged towards her, arms outstretched, giggling hysterically. Tali sidestepped at the same time that she caught her, sending her flying out like a ship taking off. She even made the noises._

"_When will I get to go out into space?" the child asked._

"_When you are older…" Tali laughed patting the child on the head._

"_Aww man…" the child mimicked one of Shepard's sayings from one of the times that he had eaten, Shepard couldn't remember for sure._

_The girl crossed her arms and looked away from her mother, messing her face with a grunt. Shepard walked over to her and bent down close to her._

"_Maybe if you are good… I'll take you the next time I go check on the universe."_

_The child instantly brightened up._

"_Really!" The excitement was almost too much._

"_You bet! Strap you into your little space suit… put on your… little boots" Shepard tickled her feet. "and your helmet," Shepard messed with her hair. "and finally your gloves." Shepard swung her like a swing from her hands, causing the child to squeal excitedly. He let her go and watched her run down the hill, towards the other children. That called her name. Shepard smiled as the dream quickly faded and smudged._

_

* * *

_

Shepard slowly opened his eyes from his sleep. He looked at the clock on his nightstand, but knew that it was useless since he didn't know what time he had collapsed onto the bed. He stretched his sore muscles and scratched his head as he yawned. He put his arm down to steady himself when he felt another lump laying beside him. He found Tali laying next to him. She slept hard, worn out from the battle that they had just managed to live through. He rubbed her side and slowly eased himself out of the bed to let her rest. Her leg kicked slightly from something in her dream causing Shepard to laugh slightly at it, before he redressed himself into his armor, and marched back to the CIC to check his fleet's progress towards Earth.

* * *

_Tali sat staring at the crystal in Shepard's room. She had shown the results, the scans, to Mordin to make sure what she was seeing was correct. She had saw the crystal as a stone, a simple mineral formation, but the scans she had taken showed her more. She tried to let the crystal go and leave the room, to ignore what it was, but when she let go, the crystal did not fall. She shook her hands to try to shake it loose, but it would not drop. She turned her hand over to see that the crystal was spreading over her hands, attaching itself to her… turning her to crystal. She pumped her legs as hard as she could, trying to get to the elevator._

_She reached out and pressed the button, but the crystal quickly attached itself to the wall. She struggled with it, but it would never break, how could it when it wasn't a rock, when it was fully aware of its existence. The crystal had advanced up her arms, branching out its jagged edges and beautiful formations. She struggled and fought the crystal's hold, but the harder she fought the faster it grew._

"_What do you want?" She pleaded._

_The crystal stopped growing, and pulsed with a faint light._

"_What do I want?" it repeated, as though it was learning her whole language through that one sentence. "I want the end…"_

"_Why?"_

"_Destiny…" it said ominously, pulsing to the words._

"_Destiny can't be the end." Tali reasoned. "Everything goes on!"_

"_I require the end of him…"_

"_Who…"_

"_You know who…"_

"_You can't… not him… who gave you to him? Why are you here?" Tali cried._

"_Retribution…" it stated._

"_What?"_

_The crystal glowed brightly as the growth quickened. It quickly consumed her causing her to wake up._

_

* * *

_

She looked around the room nervously. The crystal still sat on the nightstand. She stared at it, waiting for something to happen. The slight pulse of light that echoed from it caused her to jump up from the bed and leave the room. She had to find some way of getting rid of the sentient piece of… whatever it was. She returned to her post in engineering, slightly rested, but the nightmare had taken its toll on her slightly, making her groggy, but well enough to do her job correctly.

* * *

The fleet quickly arrived and joined the Fifth Fleet that orbited the Earth and the surrounding solar system, waiting for the attack. Shepard almost instantly received a message from Admiral Hackett, thanking him for showing up for Earth's defense. Shepard sent his regards to the Admiral before he sent a message around his fleet, informing them of his strategy to keep the Earth out of danger, like he had tried to keep others, but he quickly changed his plans in an attempt to throw off the Reapers.

"Sidonis. I need you to take half the fleet above the relay, and ready to give them everything you have when they exit. Wrex? I need you to take half of your ships to fall back to Jupiter. Wait further orders. The rest of you, come with me."

Shepard hoped for a strong victory in this sector, but as he flipped open the channel for the final piece of the puzzle, he found it sitting motionless in the space where he had left.

"Broker?"

Nothing.

"Broker?" Shepard repeated.

A crack of energy poured from the side of the ship before it exploded. Shepard stared at the debris field that the Reaper ship had produced and smashed his fist. His plan was now missing its key component. He was about to reorganize the fleet again to compensate for the lack of firepower when a dark shape came through the relay. It wasn't a Reaper, but it was almost big enough to be one.

The Illusive Man's dreadnaught came into view from the shimmer of the Sun. Shepard knew he had to ask to keep the plan together.

"Illusive Man… We need you to help us." Shepard strained.

"That is why I am here Shepard. To help humanity like I have always done…" he said testily. "Where do you need me?"

"I need you to take the Broker's spot, he just seemed to have… exploded."

He expected some remark from The Illusive Man, but nothing answered. He watched his ship obediently take its place and ready its weapons.

In the captain's quarters, a dark shape barely materialized. The broken shape of the broker hovered slowly over to the crystal that sat on his nightstand. He bent down next to it, placing his faded hand onto it causing it glow brightly.

"It is time for you to work your magic…"

A burst of light and energy filled the room casting arcing lengths of energy pulsing around the room. The broker's shape was quickly consumed by the light, not a shadow existed inside of his room as the crystal continued its flood of light. As the light receded, so did the crystal until it no longer existed, at least… it didn't exist inside of Shepard's room anymore.


	90. Chapter 90: Waiting

The Normandy sat in silence, the crew at the ready, Shepard waiting to give the orders, Joker waiting to react. None of the sensors read the flow of blinding energy that had burst through inside of the captain's quarters, and since no one witnessed nor saw the light, the anomaly was never known to have happened. Shepard reflected on this waiting game, paralleling to the old history lesson of the World War I. He saw himself stuck inside a muddy trench, waiting for the enemies to charge over their trenches and try to advance on them.

The thoughts made him feel their fear like every breath would be there last with the next charge up the line. The explosions echoing around him, gunfire biting at the dirt around his head, throwing dirt in his face. He didn't know what was worse, waiting for the enemy to arrive or waiting to arrive where the enemy was holding out. His grip tightened on the metal railing as the seconds slowly scratched by like hours. He knew the rest of the fleet, Sidonis, Wrex, Ashley, Aria, countless others, were all in the same vortex of nervous expectance.

How would they come? How would they attack? Would they win? Could they hold the line? Could they save themselves and the target that the Reapers desired more than anything? Would this attraction be their downfall, as they funnel themselves into a killing field, like the Battle of Thermopylae, or would that just strengthen them to an impossible wall of concentrated destruction? It was too late to change his mind, or anybody to change their minds about this battle. Everyone waited.

* * *

The people of Earth stood on the surface, their heads transfixed to the heavens as they waited to see the distant explosions and beam attacks. Others hid in their basements, shelters, bunkers, and buildings. Families huddled together, crying, praying, hoping, and wishing for good outcomes. Churches filled with the religious devout while cults claimed the end the be approaching.

A series of mass suicides echoed in places around the Earth from panic, fear, or religious fanatics. The news blared with stories of the impending Siege on Mother Earth. The anchors colored the picture with tales of human heroes, but the look on the anchors' eyes spoke more than their calm fake voice. Everyone was afraid of the outcome of the coming battle. If the line failed, the fleet fall, the Earth would be open to be picked clean.

Some people went out and bought guns. Most people claimed they would use it for protection, but most were planning on using it as a way of escaping the terror that would sweep across their lands. The governments had stopped their civil disputes and their civil arguments to stay with their families, staring at the stars. Everyone knew this was going to be bed, they knew the battle would be the deciding battle, of victory or slaughter.

Even the races of other planets looked to the sky after they had heard that the Reapers were funneling towards Earth for a final battle. Speculators claimed that a million Reaper ships would be barreling down into the awaiting thousand defenders. A group of batarians started betting on the outcome of the battle; the favor fell to the Reapers, but if the majority won, then everyone would lose in the end.

Shala and the rest of the quarians stood outside, digging holes and burying the dead to keep the stench and disease contained. They stared to the stars, to what they guessed was the sun and gave their prayers to the defenders. Shala glanced to the baby that tossed pieces of rocks and dirt into the air before laughing hysterically before she returned her gaze back to the star she had picked as the sun.

"Don't worry Commander Shepard… I will tell her of your bravery. You too Tali'Zorah." Shala lowered her head slowly and returned to her digging, humming the tune she had sang in the building when Rannoch was under attack.

* * *

Tali looked up from her position on the engineering deck, her stomach filled with a churning nervousness, her mind filled with a mixture of hope and doubt. Her hands shook slightly as she thought of the outcomes of the battles, the different ways that the battle could go wrong. She had high hopes of winning the battle, but she also saw a victory without her and Shepard and everyone else on the Normandy.

Ken and Gabby looked around slightly nervous, their muscles tensed. Tali couldn't hear what Ken said to Gabby, but the long kiss afterwards said everything to her. War does more than physical damage. She knew of the love that would be lost, the tears that would be shed, the mass funerals to be held after the celebration of victory, a galactic mourning of the dead.

She breathed heavily as she looked down at her hand that had been replaced by Chakwas and Mordin. She had already lost Chakwas and Liara to this war, but she had accepted their deaths, barely. She felt herself want to stand by Shepard and protect him; she could feel that he wanted to do the same, but they both knew that they could only protect watch other by being in these positions.

Mordin sat silently in his lab, looking over the scans that Tali had given him. His eyes darted through the information that he had already read through three times. The read-outs were amazing, fascinating in every aspect, dangerous to every detail. The origins of such a "thing" were vague to anyone's understanding, but a few prothean ruins hinted at their existence.

The protheans weren't the only species to have lived during their era of existence, they were merely the only race to have their culture preserved more than the other races that existed, but they hinted at a race, a powerful race of crystalline beasts. Their civilization was intelligent, powerful, advanced, but simple. They never constructed more than what they needed, their culture firmly set in their minds and memories, passed down from generation to generation, a culture that was so powerful that they were the first to be wiped out by the Reapers, completely, well that's what scholars and archeologists thought.

Tali had come into contact with a shard from the race, a shard that could be capable of remaking the beast, person, structure, or vehicle that it was originally chipped from. Mordin and Tali hit a wall a few times as they thought about the object being "chipped off". From the scans that Tali had taken, the crystal was almost completely indestructible, capable of withstanding enormous power attacks unless… unless it was intentional.

Mordin wrote and dialed in every piece of information that he had on the topic, which was few, and tried to make heads, tails, or any other body part or extremity from the image that sat before him. He wanted to go get it, run tests, see its properties learn from its molecular geometry and its possible DNA, but the time was not now to think of such things. He packed up the medical supplies he had around his lab and headed for the med-bay to take the open position as senior medical officer. The battle would take its toll on the crew, especially if they were hit by anything.

Everyone waited. Everyone, everywhere could only wait for the battle to come.


	91. Chapter 91: Never Give Up

A bluish flicker from the relay signaled the beginning of the battle. Shepard lowered his head and toned out all noise as he listened to the air escape his lungs. He came to the realization of the losses, of the sacrifices that this battle would hold. As he raised his head back to in front of him, he filled his lungs with a fresh breath of air. A large shape instantly blasted from the relay, only to be greeted by a slicing crossfire that quickly tore it apart, but even that speed of execution allowed for two more to enter the system.

The battle quickly spread out as the ships began their patterns of dog fighting. The Illusive Man's ship easily picked off the Reapers, but like a hydra, every time he killed one, two had already entered through the relay. The space around them was quickly darkened with the Reaper ships which quickly made ground against the defenders. Shepard held to his railing in the back of CIC by the galaxy map. He wished he could make his way up to Joker, but the strains on the ship's g-force equalizer threatened to throw him around the room if he let go so he stayed.

Sidonis's ship deftly dodged incoming attacks as it continuously and relentlessly against a Reaper. Some of his remaining fleet came to his aid, but they didn't have the ability or the reaction times to dodge the incoming blows. Sidonis was quickly left alone again. The shields on the Reaper finally broke allowing a peppering of hot plasma to sprinkle the outer hull burning it like Swiss cheese, but the ship quickly jerked with a speed, impossible to most ships. It almost instantaneously had wrapped its claws around his ship's hull, throwing it at the small dwarf-planet, Pluto.

His ship managed to level out, but the crinkled damage from the Reaper's grasp had severely crippled his ship's mobility. His ship almost puttered from the cracked engine manifolds and the leaking element zero from the reactor. Sidonis sat in his captain's chair amidst the chaos of his ship. Wires hung from the ceiling and the sparks fell around him. He knew that he had one last shot before his ship fell apart or exploded. The sly turian placed his money on the latter, charging his weapons and pushing the rest of the strength into the engines, charging the Reaper that had damaged him while it so busily massacred other ships.

The Reaper just managed to get a sensor reading of a ship coming from behind it. It managed to turn to see the small cracked ship fly straight at it, lasers primed and engines locked on its maxed speed. Sidonis pressed the fire button just as a large tentacle rose to greet his ship.

"This is for my mistakes…" Sidonis muttered to himself.

The laser sheared through the tentacle and cut into the hull though it wasn't a kill shot, the resulting explosion from his ships core igniting blew a larger, more lethal blow into the ship.

The Reaper drifted into space, dead. Shepard looked at his galaxy map that was zoomed in to only the Earth solar system. A series of dots showed the progression of the battle. Shepard had watched as the dot that showed Sidonis's ship had disappeared along with one of the dots that read for a Reaper ship. He lowered his head at the losses again, but a sudden turn by Joker brought his attention back up.

The flickering of light and series of colors that blinked through the viewport made Shepard slightly nervous at the outcome of the battles, but he stood adamant at his station, watching the battle of the blips.

Almost one hundred Reaper ships had entered the relay already, but only a quarter of them had been killed. The Illusive Man sat in his dark room, staring at the translucent screens and panels that showed the status of his ship. He was barely damaged and his ammo supplies were still overflowing with abundance. The distant rumble of his array of cannons echoed in his ears. He lifted his hand and looked at a sophisticated watch that he was given. It slowly counted down, and his time was almost up.

He slid the watch from his hand and threw it across the room, rubbing his face angrily. He breathed deeply and smashed his cigarette into the ash tray. He pressed a a small button on the side of the chair causing his dark room to be almost instantly flooded with light. He stood from his chair, arms folded behind his back, and walked over to the large observation window.

The hulls of the ships around his cruiser cracked and flaked off littering the battlefield with a stream of metal pieces. He turned his attention to the small glow of the sun sitting in the distance. It was so small at this distance, but he knew that the Earth was sitting at the edge of that soft yellow light. He turned back to the flood of Reapers that had severely weakened the first defensive fleet.

He watched as Shepard's defense plan worked to how he wanted, but he knew that it was falling apart simply because of the strain of the onslaught. Under any other assault force from any other race or species, it would have been a landslide victory, but against a race of machines that felt no fear and never surrendered, the plan was doomed to fail and he knew that Shepard had already come to this conclusion.

His ship shook slightly as a turian battleship exploded just above his ship. He cursed at how close the turians had decided to approach him and was tempted to change his targets to anybody close to him, but he knew that he needed the fodder to keep his ship secluded and safe as he eliminated the Reapers that had taken note of his existence. He didn't care about the death's of everyone around him.

"Expendable aliens and soldiers…" he said to himself as he lit up another cigarette, quickly removing his previous high tension thoughts behind him.

He counted down from seven and pointed at Jupiter, just as Wrex and his fleet came around to join a counter defensive attack. He smiled and nodded at the krogan ferocity that ripped through the forefront Reaper ships, but after the initial pass he saw the fleet begin to fall just like the rest of the fleet.

He pressed the side of the glass in front of him, a display appeared in the glass. He slid the slider across the glass and centered it over a Reaper ship that had managed to stave off the krogan fleet. The Illusive Man laughed slightly as he pressed the center of the circle causing a bright light to from his ship. The bright light afterwards guaranteed the death he had wanted.

"Too easy…"

* * *

The Normandy quickly banked and turned, quickly dodging and spinning around a combination of debris and laser fire. Shepard had managed to tie a strap around his waist and the railing that he had been gripping through most of the battle. It helped, but the g-forces still threatened to throw him across the room. The rest of the crew maintained calm composures as they pressed and activated sections of the ships, firing weapons, and allocating the power supply to maintain the ships intense power draw.

Shepard reached to his neck to feel the crystal that had saved his mind from the indoctrination process, but he felt air. He grabbed around his neck as if he missed it, but it was gone. He remembered back to when he had woke up and slightly remembered seeing sitting on his nightstand.

"How did it… Tali…" Shepard unhooked his strap and walked towards the elevator.

He walked through his room to the nightstand, his window blinking with a series of blasts and beams that ripped through space. The increased gravity of the ship pulling up hard made his body feel heavy causing him to hold himself up on the wall. He managed to get to the bed only to find that it wasn't on the nightstand.

"Did it fall off?" Shepard looked around the room, but didn't find any sign of the strange crystal.

He turned to leave the room, but the sudden appearance of a glowing being stopped him in his tracks. It only flickered in front of him briefly, but it was enough for him to stand, shocked, as he tried to recall what he had just seen. A rumble of the ship brought his attention quickly back to reality.

"Commander! We need you down here! Now!" Joker yelled through the intercom.

Shepard quickly ran to the elevator and pressed the button to descend. The elevator shook as the ship rumbled again. Shepard held onto the sides of the elevator tightly. He looked around the elevator nervously, hoping that the slight rumbles wouldn't turn into lurches of the ship's hull buckling. Luckily the doors opened to the CIC where crewmembers frantically punched in the degree changes and power draw percentages into their command posts. A few sparked wildly as the power draw began to pulse through the system with miscalculated surges.

Shepard pulled himself through the chairs on either side of him, making his way up to Joker who was drenched in sweat. The only time he reached from his console was to use his arm to wipe the sweat from his eyes.

"What's wrong Joker?" Shepard worried.

"Just look ahead of us…" Joker muttered through his clenched teeth as he strained his body to turn the ship sharply again.

Shepard could just make out the large shapes, too numerous to count in front of him.

"How many are there?" Shepard winced, feeling the hope fade from his body as his words dissipated into the air.

"Hundreds…" Joker guessed.

The ship rumbled again, but Shepard's mind broke from it, the sound fading with his mind. He turned back to the crew, staring at each and everyone of them before he slowly turned back to the sight in front of him. He breathed softly out as he rested his hand on Joker's shoulder.

Joker turned to him, seeing the answer to the question that was never asked in his eyes. He looked at the ground as he accepted that answer and charged the weapons and the engine to critical mass. If they were killed they would try to take as many of them with them as they could.

The Normandy shot forwards into the full power of the Reaper swarm. Shepard calmed himself as waited for the eventual response from his orders. It finally crackled through the intercom. A voice that soothed his mind as much as it drove a stake into his heart. He tried to come up with something to answer her with before she finished, but the words escaped him.

"Shepard? What are you doing? How bad is it?" Tali pleaded.

"Bad… We need to save as many of the survivors as we can… then… hopefully they can make a last stand at Earth…" Shepard hesitated.

"No! There has to be better way!" Tali denied.

"Tali… we have to give everyone a chance…"

"No!" The ship's engine churned and almost instantly halted the ship. Shepard held on tight as the g-forces tore him forwards.

"Joker? What's she doing?" Shepard hollered.

"She's rerouted engine control down to engineering… I can only turn the ship…" Joker panicked as the laser attacks flared the ships shields on either side of the ship.

"Tali! We need to give them a chance!"

"Give them a chance… We can do this without being stupid!"

Those simple words almost turned Shepard's plan inside out. He instantly doubted his command and hated himself for even ordering it. He steadied his voice and responded slowly to her.

"You're right… Power down the engine's critical overload… We'll fight this one out…" Shepard conceded.

Joker smiled at the new orders and laughed as the engine controls turned back under his command. Shepard even felt better about the new decision.

"Thanks for reminding me what we are here for." Shepard thanked.

"Isn't that why you married me…?"

Shepard smiled to himself as he pushed himself from the chair and walked back to the map of the solar system to see the severity of the situation instead of just seeing the outer view of one window. His walk back felt invigorating and as he walked up the platform his attitude had completely transformed. The map showed him what he had seen when he had looked out the window. They were being overwhelmed by an overwhelming attack.

He readied his command to be given to the remaining vessels to pull back to Mars, but he stopped just as his finger touched the send button.

The mass relay flooded with more readings, a whole fleet, a large fleet was making their way into the system. He stared at the readings of the ships, but he couldn't figure out what they were from. Were they more Reapers or something else? A sudden response echoed through the ship's intercom that answered his questions.

"Admiral Zaal'Koris of the Qwib Qwib reporting for duty commander." Zaal echoed with his high-pride voice.

"Glad to see that you could make it to the party. Did you bring the gifts?" Shepard joked.

"We brought a ton of gifts" Zaal laughed.

Shepard watched as the new ship readings sent a fury of small lines across his holographic view. The rumbling of the ship confirmed that fury of missiles, laser, and plasma attacks that had just been unleashed into the Reaper killing wall.

"We can do this…"


	92. Chapter 92: Added Insurance

The Calvary arrived in full force, instantly turning the tides of the battle. The initial salvo of attacks managed to destroy or weaken more than half of the attackers who had quickly turned and began destroying the new ships. Shepard watched as the ships were destroyed at the same time as he watched the stream of friendly ships pour from the relay. It was as if the entire Migrant Fleet had shown up at Earth's doorstep. Zaal had been the first of the Admirals to introduce himself into the battle, but the battle slowly revealed the presence of Han'Gerrel and Daro'Xen.

"It's an honor to save you commander." Han'Gerrel joked, as his ship fired another fury of shield dilapidating lasers that easily sheared through a already weakened Reaper ship.

The radio chatter slowly became thicker with greetings of captains and crews, with thanks and cheers from the war torn side. One voice stuck out the most, a voice that had hated the prospect of what had just happened.

"Thank God you showed up." sighed Ashley Williams who had managed to acquire her own ship and section of the fleet to control for the humans.

Shepard knew she wasn't the most tolerant person for alien races, especially quarian, since she felt that Tali had taken him away from her, but she couldn't complain when they had saved her and her planet. He hoped that after the battle was won that Ashley would see the light, the errors of her judgments, and accept his decision for leaving her. He just wanted her to move on which she hadn't appeared to be doing.

Shepard's ideas of a post battle unity between his old crewmember was still hopeful at best. The Reapers, though they were overwhelmed, still managed to hold back the strong offensive. The sight alone made Shepard's blood boil. He had hoped they would just die, but they fought as hard as they had when they had entered the system.

The final ships to the quarian fleet trickled through the relay, almost as fast as new Reapers began to come through it again. Shepard pounded his fist against the railing.

"How many are there?" he rhetorically asked aloud.

He was glad to see the new fleet was able to hold the stream of Reapers off before they accumulated to much while they destroyed the stragglers that had fallen behind the lines. This full out attack appeared to be a bad move on the Reaper's part. Shepard had believed that they wanted to acquire Earth to obtain the majority of the human race, but slowly he felt another answer growing inside him.

The whole quarian fleet had funneled themselves into this one system, along with the entire krogan fleet. Every human ship that could fly and fight was also sitting in this region. Almost the entire galactic defensive sat in this one system. What they lost here was the last of the forces to be had, except for the asari, turians, and salarians who were still guarding the Citadel from attack.

The power of the Normandy surged again, causing another circuit board to snap into sparks. Shepard ran over to the location and looked over the damage. He quickly repaired it, but he knew that something was happening in engineering that had decreased efficiency. He gave his captain's power to Joker as he made his way to investigate the engineering problem.

The ship rumbled and shook as spatial disturbances rattled it. One strong one managed to throw Shepard to the ground inside of the elevator causing him to sprain his ankle. He cursed at the luck as he limped from the elevator into the roaring engine room.

The roaring had hid the yelling of orders and commands, a body was writing on the ground, but Shepard couldn't see why. Tali had been trying to send a message up to the CIC, but the electronics had been blown out causing it to never make it to that point. Shepard limped further in the room to see that his newest engineering hand was down on the ground, a series of burns ran across his eyes.

"What happened?" Shepard yelled over the din of the engines.

Tali turned and almost jumped out of her suit to see that Shepard was standing behind her, but she quickly forced it out of her mind.

"A flare in the engines caused the computer to burst and blind Eric. The added workload has been too much and we haven't been able to make contact with anyone on the ship. He needs medical attention as much as we need another engineer." Tali explained.

Shepard looked around the room, sparks falling in every direction.

"I'll be back!" Shepard promised.

He limped his way to the cargo deck where Grunt sat smiling at the shaking of the ship, holding his shotgun close to his chest, ready for battle.

"Are we going to be taking the fight to them?" Grunt asked when Shepard fell through the door.

"Not yet. I need you to carry Eric up to the med-bay." The ship shook violently. "Now!"

Grunt clipped the shotgun on his back and ran out the door, keeping his balance against the g-force shifts and the shaking of the ship. Shepard followed close behind him, taking a place beside Tali at Eric's calibration console. The increased speed of the pages turned Shepard's head over when he first stared at it, but he slowly began helping the ship's power level out.

"You have to move faster than that!" Tali yelled.

Shepard knew he wasn't as fast as Eric, but he was also out of practice. The first page of calibrations were completed, immediately sending another full page. His speed quickened as he managed to complete the next page in half the time it took him to complete the first page. He still wasn't as fast as Tali, Gabby, and Ken, but he stabilized the ship's power just slightly enough to keep it in the green.

"Captain! We can handle it! You should get back up to bridge!" Ken hollered across the room.

"Their fine! You guys need a someone who has the next highest amount of engineering experience to keep this boat afloat." Shepard laughed making a joke of it.

Ken managed to laugh to, but a series of sparks from the wall from another conduit snapping forced him to focus harder on his task. The three managed to gain control of the power output while Shepard took the time to begin the small repairs on the conduits and intercom system that had been fried in the engineering deck.

He finished the final patches and walked back to 'his' console and began pushing the power output readings further back to maintain stability. Another burst of g-forces hit the room as the ship swung another sharp turn causing Shepard and the rest of the engineering deck to hold tight to their computers. Jack stumbled into the room.

"Can't he drive any smoother?" Jack complained.

"He's trying his best to keep us alive…" Shepard answered, slightly annoyed at her complaint.

"I'll be the judge of that." She left the room.

The slight hum of the elevator told him where she was going. He wished he could follow her up and stop her from doing anything stupid, but he knew he had no power in the position he was in. Instead he opened the intercom that he had just fixed.

"Joker. Jack is coming up to 'improve your driving' so be ready for her." Shepard warned.

"What does that mean… Damn! Things are getting hairy commander… I…" Joker was interrupted.

"Get out of the way! Let me see what's going on!" Jack's voice could be heard.

"Get out of here!" Joker complained.

"We are here to help you Joker." came Samara's voice.

"Holy shi-" Joker stopped mid sentence. "Oh my god…"

* * *

Jack stepped off at the crew quarters and made her way to Samara's chambers. She almost yelled with annoyance when she caught her still sitting in meditation.

"Come on! We have work to do!" Jack yelled.

The bluish glow faded from her as she stood and turned to Jack, slightly confused.

"What does the captain wish of me?" Samara asked.

"He doesn't wish of you for anything than to keep this ship together. We need to head to the bridge!" Jack said.

"I will go, but you better explain what you have in mind for us to 'keep this ship together'." Samara said in a straight monotone.

They both stepped into the elevator and walked out onto the bridge. Jack slightly jogged to where Joker frantically punched in new directions and power allocations.

"Get out of the way! Let me see what's going on!" Jack instructed as she tried to squeeze herself between the chair and the console so she could see everything out the window.

"Get out of here!" Joker protested, pushing her out of the way.

"We are here to help you Joker…" Samara pardoned.

Joker looked back at the viewport to see the brightness of a plasma ray heading straight for the ship. His reactions wouldn't be able to pull the ship through this one. He felt his arms shoot up as he yelled.

"Holy shi-" but nothing hit the ship. He looked through his hands to see a bluish color in front of the ship. He looked around to see both Samara and Jack glowing with their biotics.

"Oh my god… Commander we have ourselves some better shields." Joker laughed. "Miranda we need you up here!" Joker sent across the ship.

Miranda walked from the elevator and walked into the Jack and Samara's group.

"This better be good Joker…" Miranda slightly complained at having to squeeze past Jack who threw her dirty looks.

"Help them deflect some of the attacks. We need to give engineering time to catch up." Joker laughed as another beam just grazed by the shields from the slight change in direction from a small push launched by Samara.

"Why do they need more time?" Miranda questioned as she helped Jack slightly deflect another shot to just miss the ship.

"They are experiencing some technical difficulties…" Joker humored.

"I don't think now is the time for jokes Jeff…" EDI stated.

"Hey I thought I'd cheer some people up… its kinda stressful holding everyone's lives in your hand when you execute a perfect ninety degree turn…" Joker bragged.

"Shut up…" Jack sighed as she warmed up another blast.

* * *

Shepard looked around the engineering deck, the power draw lowered significantly and the g-forces had subsided. He looked at Tali and shrugged.

"I guess Jack made a plan… with Samara it seems…" Shepard guessed.

He ran out of the engineering deck to make his way to the med-bay to see if Eric would be in any condition to take his job back, but he doubted it from seeing the initial burns. He ran into the room to see a series of nurses and Mordin standing over a writhing body of Eric who lashed and screamed out against the people who were holding him down.

"Shepard. Not good time. Performing emergency surgery. Very dangerous. Glad g-force shifts ceased. Outcome could have been… catastrophic…" He picked up a set of vicious looking pliers and brought them over to where Shepard couldn't see.

Eric yelled out again as the pliers opened his eye that had been burned beyond repair. The device also cleaned out the scar tissue and spread a layer of medi-gel over the burned area. He moved the device away from the writhing body and pulled out a wrap of gauze, wrapping the eye area and his eye. He patted him on the side.

"Should be good to go. Sorry for any discomfort. Didn't want to impair your judgment when you returned to your position."

Eric sighed and put his hand against the wrapped hole in his head. He felt like crap and the pain still echoed through his mind, but he knew that it had to be done. He turned on the table, causing his legs to dangle off the side of the table. He caught sight of Shepard who had entered the room and smiled.

"I was making sure that my engineering team didn't lose its newest member." Shepard patted the young engineer on his arm and helped him up.

Eric felt honored by being concerned by Shepard, but the more he thought about how Shepard had cared for everyone on the whole ship, it lost some of its luster, but he still kept the improved confidence that it granted him. He walked back to the elevator to return to engineering, running into a few walls along the way from the loss of depth. He coughed as he entered the elevator. Part of him had hoped he could lay out for the rest of the battle, but the man that was made from serving on the ship told him to do his duty for the crew.

Shepard gave a satisfied nod to Mordin as he left the room. He still felt the pain of losing Chakwas, but he was glad that he had Mordin to replace her. He looked back up to the bridge and rubbed his tired eyes. He popped a few pills to keep himself awake and made his way back to the bridge, knowing the battle was still burning around him.


	93. Chapter 93: Deprivation

Eric limped into the Engineering deck, his eye patch drawing the concerned glances of the Ken, Gabby, and Tali, but he disarmed their concern with a slight smile. He instantly resumed his speed at the calibrating the energy drives and the heavy power draws of the ship. He started slow at first as he became use to seeing things through one eye, but he quickly compensated.

Shepard had made his way back to the bridge where the sight of a bright blue light from the helm shocked him at first, but he quickly realized the source of the energy. He chuckled at the idea that Jack had implemented and looked back at the map to destroy his mood. The Calvary had manage to post-pone their deaths but another wave of Reaper's poured through the relay, decimating the forces in front of them without mercy. Shepard smashed his hand against the railing again, he couldn't even remember a time when he hadn't hit the rail.

"Joker . How are we doing?" Shepard questioned.

A small silence preceded his answer from him taking another sharp turn past another close laser barrage. "Once we get the engineering deck under control then we-"

"This is engineering. We are back up and running. Don't push her that hard again… we might not be as lucky." Tali managed to tease even when the suspense had boiled down most of the crew's nerves to the breaking point.

"Let's get this bird moving then!" Joker yelled as he gunned the engines and sent the ship through a barrel roll around destroyed Reaper claw, firing the lasers straight into a weakened Reaper, shattering its hull and melting its core. The element zero snap reacted to itself causing a sharp chain reaction through the ship causing glowing cracks to ripple from the core before the side of the ship bubbled and blew open.

Shepard had began to miss the fighting of traditional combat with the sounds of explosion and gunfire to keep your mind set to the reality of the war, but in space… in space, all you had was a map and the occasional turbulence from a spatial disturbance that may or may not shake the ship. He had found it to be unnerving, more so when he was sitting in front of a map watching blips fight.

He cursed his luck, but he was thankful for it keeping his ship somehow safe. He watched as the battle began to fan out across the system, the fleet still keeping high in numbers, but their numbers were falling faster than the Reapers were, a rate that was closing them down to a defeat even with the assistance of the whole quarian fleet. Shepard looked at Legion for something of an answer, but the geth platform simply stared at him, staring into his soul like he knew their fate, but was restricted to disclose the information.

Another break in the Reaper flow brought in some more assistance, the last of the geth carriers and warships. They joined in combat with their quarian creators, some ships even sacrificing themselves to aid in a quarian vessel. Shepard watched the icons fight, together, with the same ferocity, a strength that would have been spent on themselves if he hadn't prevented the war that would have enveloped the geth and quarians. The small bit of reinforcements were still not enough to keep the Reapers back, though, Reaper reinforcements had ceased, but the already one hundred and fifty ships that still tore through the system remained difficult kills.

Only the strongest of the Reaper's ships had survived the initial battles, along with the ever thinking of the Reaper super machine. The machines had began to alter themselves or their shields causing the defenders attacks to slowly become weaker and weaker against them, but the power of the defenders stayed in their numbers which was slowly falling.

An alliance ship pulled beside the Normandy sending an overview of the morale of the battle. It was delivered by none other than Ashley Williams who would be the only person to see the importance of keeping Shepard informed of the battle's toll, mentally and physically. Shepard needed the information as he began pulling back the more critical ships while pushing a series of newer ships that turned the battle into their favor again.

Her ship quickly left again, Shepard made note to mark it as important so that he could keep his eye on her. Another ship, slightly rougher in design, but packed with a bit more teeth quickly swung by the ship sending a quick message before it launched back into the battle.

"Commander. Good to see these dogs haven't chewed your leg off. My forces are beginning to get a bit afraid of dying. Care to get some fire off of them as I show them who they should really be afraid of?" Zaeed's message rang.

Shepard laughed, but agreed to his whims. He sent the rest of the krogan fleet, that had lost none of its luster to take the place of the flimsy mercenary line of the battle. Shepard watched as Zaeed's ship sat silently with a series of other ships sitting around him. He looked at Legion, knowing he was able to hear the whole pep talk.

"Mercenary Zaeed's motivational speech included the threatening of each of the crew members' various genitalia. Geth find the reaction to boost morale significantly. Saving speech for future study." Legion answered.

Shepard smiled at the thought of the speech, but he knew the battle couldn't take any mistakes. He focused all of his attention on his screen, barking orders to Legion who quickly sent and organized the ships around him that were left.

* * *

The people of the Earth received a blurry picture of the battle that was taking place at their doorstep. Some people bit their lips, others cried deeply at the battle, other simply stood in amazement. Many had been complaining about the reliability of what a media icon that Shepard had become, claiming his Reaper story was simply to gain more publicity. Those people now stood on a shaky dirt floor that buckled under their feet as the foundation of their thoughts and beliefs began to fall from under them.

Suicides increased along with a spike in recruitment offices that had quickly became over run with straight-from-the-streets soldiers. Any of the people with the highest amount of flying experience was given driver and pilot positions for ferries and medics for destroyed ship that managed to float into a safe zone, just at the battle's edge.

Other's were given combat roles, commanding small fighters to aid in the battle as either distractions or a part of main fleets that were still prepping to join their comrades. Loved ones were broken apart, farewell kisses, farewell tears, floods of emotions swept the globe. The moon base training operations along with the stations that orbited the Earth began sending their trained soldiers, fresh from boot camp and training exercises, into the thick of the battle un afraid of death.

Even the instructors joined the fight, leaving their positions as teachers when the numbers of recruits began to dwindle with the time that the Earth had left before it was attacked directly. The military even pulled out a project in the making, fueled by human and turian scientists. A series of cannons along the backside of the moon opened out from the edges. The new targeting system that relied on a series of satellites and outposts positioned on the moons of Jupiter gave the guns an unmatched accuracy.

The guns began to fire, the crowds watched as the Earth began to fight back from their positions though the length of time it took the shots to make it to the area they were destined was still delayed greatly, but the calibration systems that the turians had generated gave enough of a rough prediction on the ships to give a strong read out on the future position of the ships.

Shepard watched as a lone Reaper simply blipped from existence from his map. He looked up to the glowing cockpit and yelled.

"What happened to that Reaper?" Shepard asked, curious from the lack of being attacked death.

"Someone is firing from… I don't know commander. I think its Earth firing at us." Joker guessed.

The shear power and precision needed to fire the thin laser rounds were almost astronomically impossible and highly dangerous with the dense grouping of friendly and enemy forces, yet the laser appeared to transcend common belief and ideas and hit its target each time. Even the added fire power from the offensive of the Earth barely evened to odds out enough for them to win, and if they did it wouldn't feel like a victory, especially if it crippled them to a point that one last Reaper could easily tear them apart.

Most of the forces that remained had gained a high level of experience in the escape of Reaper attack patterns. Eventually the rate of death's from the surrounding fleet began to fall while the rate of deaths from the Reapers stayed the same, a positive turn for the battle.

Shepard crossed his fingers and hoped that the battle would continue this, Hoped that it would stay where it was and that the battle would be won without too many more losses. He reached up to his neck to feel the strange crystal, but he quickly remembered that it had vanished, yet he could still feel its presence around his neck. He brushed it off and rubbed his neck trying to shake the feeling. A feeling of loneliness, like the crystal had kept him company, had talked to him, was living with him.

He shivered slightly at the thought, but he drove distraction away from his thoughts again, his mind focusing on the battle still in front of him. He needed to sleep and he knew it, but he couldn't sleep when the war still raged in front of him, while his crew was in danger. He slowly became aware of a hand rest on his shoulder.

"What is it Kelly?" Shepard asked, turning to see the concerned look burned on her face.

"You need to get some sleep commander… You've been up all day. Get a small cat nap and get back down here. We can handle it for now. If we need you, we'll make sure to dump some water on you." Kelly teased pushing him towards the elevator.

Shepard felt that he shouldn't go, that he needed to do work, to keep his crew safe, but her words had been true. The battle had been burning for over twenty hours now, time flies by when war has destroyed the clock. He walked up to his room and stared around the bed and couch. He slowly began to decide which he would prefer to sleep on. He walked over to the couch.

"Just a short cat-nap…" He sat down on the couch, feeling its softness and embrace.

His body slowly fell to the side, his feet counter balancing his descent, his arms cushioning the fall. He wrapped his arms around a pillow that had been thrown there, squeezing it softly he felt the boundaries of reality slip from his fingers and his mind slowly fade off. The room became black, the noises slowly faded, the turbulence smoothed out, gravity ceased, and the physical boundaries from states of matter ceased to exists.

* * *

Ashley sat in the captain's chair of her ship, a new rank promotion that had been granted to her. She almost had let herself fall in love with her old commander on how he had deftly dealt with the chaotic fleet, but she knew the he didn't share those feelings for her, she knew he was married, married to Tali.

She scrunched her face as she thought about how she had greeted him on Horizon. Her words burned into her head and bit at her heart. She hit her head with her fist and looked back out on the battle, the crew still playing out her orders perfectly. She accepted Shepard leaving her, but the pain still hit her when she heard his voice, of memories with him.

He was the first to care about her, the first to leave her… no she had left him, her words returned. She wondered how she had managed to be mad at him instead of glad, how she didn't even kiss him, or care for his touch. Was it the military dulling her senses? Was it her own way of dulling her senses? She shook her head and looked forward.

It was behind her now and she wasn't going to dwell on the idea, not now. She tapped her fingers on the arm of her chair, thinking about what she had just thought through. She shook her head again. Why? She slammed her fist on the arm of the chair, holding her head tightly, some of the crew looked over at her lashing out.

Feeling slightly embarrassed, she lowered her arms and gave a strong look at her crew. She knew she shouldn't be acting like this on her ship, not in front of her crew like this. She looked over the playing out of the battle.

"Target Charlie nine o'clock low…" Ashley ordered.

The crew turned back to their work. The lasers fired, bouncing off of the ship she had sent them to attack.

"Pattern Alpha, switch, and fire again." She ordered quickly.

The Reaper raised its tentacle up to the ship as it made its way around. Ashley noticed it quickly and turned to her pilot.

"Do a barrel roll!" She screamed.

The ship just turned away from the beam that just flared the shields. The laser attack hit square in the middle of the ship, but the shields still held. She growled at the bad luck and pushed her crew harder to kill this enemy. She just wanted this to be over.


	94. Chapter 94: Victory of Inevitable Defeat

_Soft, the windows burned, the morning sun rose in the east. The crack of dawn, sun beams piercing through the cloud shields. Smooth ocean breeze, sighing of the waves. Eyes open, flicker of hillside, relaxation… tension building. Sits up and rubs eyes, room's walls shake, the floor remains still._

"_Shepard…" whispered the sighing of the ocean._

_He turns to the window just to be blinded by a sun beam. After opening his eyes again, he feels that he is standing, the ocean is louder. His eyes adjust to the brightness, a dark figure is standing in front of him, in the water. His eyes adjust completely to see Tali standing in the water, her back towards him._

_He takes a step forward, but his stops abruptly as the chains anchoring him causing him to fall over. He quickly glances back at the chains, fear filling his mind as he turned back to Tali who slowly turned to him; the sky began to burn. She looked afraid as she stood staring at him, tears trying to trickle through her body while her strength held them back._

_She also tried to move towards him, but a sudden line of water told him that she too had been chained. He reached out to her; she reached out to him. Cinders and ashes fell from the sky like burning petals from a nearby tree. Shepard strained with the chains, his voice unable to make words. A bright flash behind her drew his attention, a missile strike._

_He looked back to Tali wanting to get closer to her, to comfort her, shockwave lifts the water higher. He pushes his entire weight into the chains, pulling at them, harder and harder. The chain broke, sending him falling into the water. He quickly rose and rand through the water to her, his heart racing as fast as he was racing the crashing waves. He reached his hands out to grab her, but her body collapsed into smoke._

_He held the ashes in his hands, confused, lost. The rush of the shockwave and water neared. A sudden impact against his body._

Shepard jumped up from the couch breathing hard. He quickly looked around the cabin that shook slightly from the battle outside. He rubbed his eyes and quickly left the room to return to work. He was sick of the vivid dreams that he had been having. The elevator ride gave him just enough time to calm his thoughts and grasp reality and his nerves again.

The door opened the same room he had left, but now everyone looked bogged down and tired. Shepard knew the crew couldn't handle much more of this.

"Joker? What's our status?" Shepard asked, rubbing the rest of the sleep from his eyes.

"I don't know how to tell you this, but we are winning!" Joker echoed excitedly.

Jack and Miranda were sitting on the floor of the CIC while Samara floated in a state of meditation, waiting to be needed again. Shepard observed the map to see that the number of Reapers had dropped to only twenty-five.

"How long was I out?" Shepard asked.

"Only thirty minutes commander… you should rest more." Kelly informed him.

"I'm fine. I want to see this." Shepard stared at the screen as two more Reapers were destroyed. To his dismay he found that they had suffered heavy losses too, but they still maintained a strong fleet in what the galaxy would call a strong fleet. Five more Reapers fell.

Shepard crossed his fingers as he hoped the battle would end quickly.

"Have any other Reapers came through the relay?" Shepard inquired, hopeful of the answer.

"None commander… I think this is it." Joker stated in an almost unbelievable excitement. Seven Reapers fell during his talk to Joker bringing the toll up to fourteen.

Shepard stepped from his platform and made his way to the helm where Joker sat, the lines under his eyes, telling the story of how long he had been up. Shepard knew that Joker had been up for almost three days now, another reason for the battle to end now, so Joker could rest.

Joker breathed out slowly as he took another energy pill to stay awake. The pill almost took immediately as his reaction time quickly turned the ship from another blast from a desperate Reaper that was slowly ripped apart from an incoming quarian attack wave. Shepard knew that Joker had given every ounce of effort into keeping the Normandy safe and tried to think of some way of awarding him for it.

He made his way back to map to see that another five Reapers had fallen, the rate increasing as their numbers began to drop faster and faster. The last seven fell quickly as they tried to run for the relay. The solar system became quiet, in a state of calm. Shepard stared at the map, void of Reapers. They had won, and they were alive. Shepard almost laughed, feeling his legs want to buckle from underneath of him.

The crew cheered excitedly, clapping and hollering victory yells. Legion turned to Shepard.

"Shepard Commander. The fleet are exhibiting behavior similar to krogans."

Shepard laughed at Legion's words, relieved that it was over. He walked back to Joker's chair to give his award, but he found Joker to be fast asleep in his chair. Shepard shrugged and leaned the chair back for him. As he walked down the hallway of his CIC, the crew stood, applauding their commander. Messages flooded into the Normandy along with to the rest of the remaining ships of their services.

The reality of the situation still had an air of being surreal and strange. It was the greatest victory that he had felt in all his life. The only point that he had ever felt this surreal and confused with the happiness was after he had finished his bonding ritual and had Tali in his arms. He found the memories to be fitting.

The crews of the ships sat back and relaxed, gaining the sleep that they had lost during the duration of the fight. Shepard simply plopped down on the floor of the CIC and let his back straighten out on the hard floor. Jack had already been laying that way, but now she was fast asleep when she had heard that the battle was over. With his ear against the hull of the ship, Shepard could still hear the below decks cheering and celebrating their victory.

Shepard closed his eyes to get the rest he needed, but a thought broke his mood. He didn't want to check, but he knew he had to, to be completely safe. Pushing himself off of the floor, he stepped back over to the galaxy map and zoomed out to the nearest areas around their mass relay. He was relieved to find nothing approaching. He pressed the zoom out again to see nothing. Nonchalantly, he pressed the zoom one last time.

His mood fell as the red wall approached toward Earth from the farthest reaches of the galaxy. They had a day before they arrived. It wasn't enough time to gather much of the forces together. At most it was enough time to lick their wounds and get some sleep before the battles started again. He was glad that Joker was finally getting some sleep and that he would be able to let the rest of the crew sleep and get some rest before the day would repeat itself, but he knew they didn't have the forces to stop this attack. They could try, but it had taken a fleet that was almost unstoppable to just stop the first wave, and now they had a more densely packed first wave approaching from the ruined sectors of the galaxy.

Shepard sent the message around to the surrounding ships. Hs crew looked up to him, tired and lost in thought as they knew that they were going to die the next time. The first battle, the victory, everything that they were so happy from the first time was now coming quickly to an end.

"The battle you have just fought is just going to repeat itself…" Shepard started to broadcast. "Another wave of Reapers is fast approaching, more densely packed and far more intelligent to how we fight, but that won't matter. The first battle had taken the entire krogan and quarian fleet with most of the Earth's defenses being used to help us." Shepard paused, think about his next words carefully. "We might not live through this next fight, but we can make it worth it. We can show them that we will not just bend to their wills. They believe themselves to be gods, ruling over all life because they gave us the technology to grow to what we are now, but it is time for the 'slaves' to break the chains and rise above their masters. We can give the next generation of life in this galaxy a better chance at surviving against the Reapers if we kill enough of them. So even if we die today, we will tomorrow."

The crew gained in confidence, a fight that would even continue after them was a fight they wanted to win. Some of the crew focused on their control panels knowing it might be the last thing they looked at. Some pulled out pictures from under their hats of families, loved ones, and pets. Some of the crew shed some tears, but they never let themselves fall apart.

"So I ask of all of you today to get some rest before we hold back the demons at our doorstep. It may be the last time that you sleep, the last time you will have time to dream." Shepard finished, turning back to the elevator of the ship to return to his cabin to try to get some sleep or to try to make some kind of plan to defend against the Reapers, he didn't know.

He stepped from the elevator and walked over to his bed. He stared at it only briefly before he turned back to his computer. He sat down and fired up scenarios to see the outcomes of the battles. Each one ended in their defeat, but he kept his eye on the time and how many they had killed. He eventually narrowed it down to three strategies, one that offered the longest fighting chance, the other offering the highest kills, and the other hitting in the middle.

Shepard wondered if he should wait for someone to come help him or answer his distress signal to the Citadel. He pressed his head into his hands and breathed. He looked back at the bed and back at his plans and strategies.

"Maybe a few more tests…" Shepard fired up different probabilities and scenarios, trying a multitude of different strategies and placements. He felt himself dose off slightly through his twentieth test. He rubbed his eyes and fired up another test, forcing himself to stay awake.

The door to Shepard's cabin opened. Tali walked in, curious at the lack of light in the room. She turned on the light to find Shepard slumped over on his desk, fast asleep. She felt sorry for him, for everything that he had done. He walked over to his sleeping form and pushed his arm causing him to stir. He looked sleepily up to her and let her lift him, not knowing what she was doing. His mind quickly guessed her actions causing him to pull his hand out from her grasp.

"I need to get this right…" Shepard murmured.

He had almost took a seat when Tali grabbed back onto his arm and pulled him away from the computer.

"You need to sleep. You've done enough." Tali pleaded.

Shepard knew she was right, but he couldn't bring himself to sleep when the galaxy needed him.

"The galaxy needs you, but you need to be aware that you are with us…" Tali teased.

Shepard laughing, finally conceding to her will. He put some of his weight on her as they made their way to the bed. She slowly let him down on the bed where he sat staring at the nightstand, the questions returning to his mind.

"Tali? What did you do to my necklace?" Shepard asked.

Tali stopped where she was. She cocked her head back to him, her eyes thinking behind her mask.

"I took it off of you. I didn't want you to break it." Tali explained.

"Where did you put it?" Shepard asked.

"I put it on your nightstand. Shepard that necklace-" Tali started.

"It's not on the nightstand anymore… could you help me find it?" Shepard interrupted unknowingly to something important.

Tali turned to the bed and leaned in close so that he could hear her. "That necklace is not a necklace. It's a living being…"

Shepard laughed.

"No really it was something… something that shouldn't exist, something that was killed off when the Reapers attacked the first time." Tali explained.

Shepard, at first, thought it was a joke, but he could see the concern and worry in her eyes. He almost instantly became concern as he looked around thinking that he would see it.

"What is it?" Tali asked looking where Shepard was looking. "What's wrong?"

"It's gone. Where is it?" Shepard looked under the bed and around the room.

"What do you mean it's-" Tali looked at the nightstand to see that it was indeed gone. "Keelah…" She whispered to herself.

She quickly opened her Omni-tool and scanned the room. There was no presence of the crystal, but more strange than that, the trail of residual energy that had echoed off of the crystal led directly to the middle of the room before it completely vanished. Tali didn't need this strain on Shepard to keep him awake and not resting.

"Shepard! It's gone. Someone took it… or teleported it off of the ship, I don't know. The trail just ends right here." Tali objected to Shepard's searching.

"What? How could it end right there?" Shepard asked.

"I don't know…" Tali almost whispered as she thought about how it could have left the ship.

Shepard fell back onto the bed, beat and tired, and now he had to deal with this. Tali walked over to his side, staring down at him, almost a broken man from the strain that the galaxy was placing on him. She sat beside her, pulling her visor off and placing him in her embrace. Shepard breathed out hard, but he was far from breaking. He held Tali closer to him and felt the soft fabric of her hood. He almost thought it felt like her hair, soft and smooth.

He leaned back into the bed, Tali kissing him on the way down, his mind slowly forgetting its troubles. The passion increased slightly as Tali and Shepard both felt their worries melt with each second that their lips were together. Tali opened her eyes and looked deeply into Shepard's eyes.

"We will always have each other."


	95. Chapter 95: Creation Through Death

The sleep gave Shepard a boost in his morale and his hopes. Tali still laid in the bed, her arms sprawled, hair a mess, but the soft smile hid the tension of their inevitable situation. Shepard couldn't help but smile at watching her. He leaned in close feeling her warm breath on his face. Softly, he brushed the hair from her face, giving her a soft kiss. She slightly laughed as she slowly opened her eyes, looking into Shepard's eyes.

"Today's the day…" Tali stated, gaining a serious tone that still remained hidden from the glow of her face. _Was she acceptant of death or did she believe them to make it through this battle?_

"Yes it is…" Shepard pained to say. He ran his hands through her hair, the ridges of her head that hid underneath her hair could be felt. He leaned in close, placing another kiss on her forehead, but he kept his head pressed against hers. "Time to shine…" Shepard smiled.

Tali smiled underneath Shepard's embrace. She slid from the bed, not wearing much more than the bare essentials. The happiness, the spring in her step was gone as she walked across the room to grab her suit. She through another smile back to Shepard as she slid the suit back on, but Shepard had already read her body movements. He stared thoughtfully at her. The times they could have had… Shepard rubbed his face and stopped focusing on the could have's and the will's. He forced himself to stand, his muscles aching from the strain of constantly wearing his armor in case of being spaced.

Shepard had only slid the breastplate over his head when two hands reached from behind him, a head nestled in his neck.

"You better be ready for this John…" Tali whispered in his ear.

The hands slid from his torso. Shepard almost instinctually turned to her after the release, all of her suit was on except for her visor and hood.

"You are so beautiful…" Shepard offered.

Tali stared at him, the smile spreading shakily across her face, her nerves finally shot. Tears fell from her eyes as she tried to keep the smile on her face, but she knew the outcome of the coming battle. She almost leaped over to Shepard, wrapping her arms tightly around him, her breath broken and full of moisture. Her face pouring with sadness.

"I'm afraid…" Tali whispered in his ear. "I'm afraid for Nadja…"

Shepard felt himself crack at the name.

"I know… so am I…" He held her closer, feeling her breaths, feeling her sorrow, sharing the pain. He pushed her out just to look into her eyes. "We have to stay strong for her. We will pull through this… one way or another we will pull through this." To Shepard, his own words felt hollow and void of hope, but he still hoped for the impossible.

Tali wiped the tears from her eyes and managed to smile and nod.

"Right. We have to stay strong through this. It will be over, one way or another." Tali said lifting the mask up to conceal her face again.

Shepard stopped her hand halfway. Tali turned her attention back to him just as he planted another kiss on her, softly rubbing her cheeks with his hands. He finished by rubbing them underneath of her chin. The kiss made her feel better about their situation, but not that much more.

The elevator stopped at the CIC, its doors opening almost solemnly, the crew deathly quiet. Shepard stepped off, turning sharply to see Tali standing in the elevator. He raised his hand, giving her a short wave that spoke of reassurance and hope, but Shepard's eyes showed his pain in the expression; Tali tried to ignore it. He stared at the closed doors, trying to get his grip on his character and to wipe the emotion out of his system. He knew his crew needed him more than ever, and a broken captain led to a broken crew.

He turned around, his head held high and his posture straight. He managed to paint bravery on his face to inspire the crew to do the same, but he already knew that this crew would go to hell and back with Shepard as their commander since most of the crew who called him crazy had left.

The galaxy map showed the urgency of the situation. The Reapers had already made it three quarters of the way there. Shepard quickly pulled up his unfinished plans, his theories of the outcome of the battle. He laughed as he hit the delete button, pulling up a blank screen.

"Let's try something different."

* * *

The Reapers flew through the empty systems, merciless, unrelenting. Their different shapes could be seen when they passed by stars, but who would see them. Many colonies that were not evacuated had been completely destroyed, the colonists fighting to their last breaths before an air of new breath entered their lungs, turning them against their allies.

The swarm advanced toward their fields to reap what they had sown. One shape in particular made the rest of the shapes small and fragile. A large station, floated among the ships, softly turning in the void of space, cracks of light emanating from its many vents. It too had a mind, a calloused mind, but it still acted different from the other Reapers. Instead of looking forward to the battle and the eradication of the life that had fought his race back so valiantly, he looked forward to starting new life.

Large ancient characters were worn across the hull of the massive ship. The language had never been seen before, a language that was older than the protheans, and many layers beyond them. The language was beautiful and spoke of a culture that had valued the arts, had valued music, had valued their lives, who had tried to cheat death with a new creation.

The ship had learned every passing language and every passing culture, assimilating it into its almost infinite memory. The first thing it always translated was the name that it had been given by its creators, then again, his creators were him. His program had been active when the atrocities of the ancient creators began, the kidnaps, the killings, the murders. They had generated the technology to generate Reapers, and it was given to it now.

It held the power of creation in its hands, a delicate art, but a needed one to keep the memories of the past alive. It had known that its name was that of its duty. Creation, they had called him, God, Allah, Goddess. It had heard every name to describe the thing it was and the thing it wasn't. It dictated the growth of the next coming species, and it dictated who would be "saved". The coordinates loomed in its processors, the home planet of a slightly primitive primate that had shown its nuisance in its resilience to their power.

This species had fought them off like a disease. They bred like rabbits and expanded quickly into the galaxy. From the other species, who had found their technology first, it was amazed to find that the human race had accepted and integrated the technology almost instantly. Their innovation was almost unmatched. Their evolution of their species was beyond anything that Creation could had expected.

The ancient machine felt a sense of pride in its choice, but its pride was none more strong than its feelings of regret and sorrow. With each species it killed, it had felt their pain and anguish. Each race had fought to survive against them, yet each one had fallen. It kept the ruins to show the next race that their time would come to an end, but all that appeared to draw was strong resilience and a strong force to be reckoned with.

One voice rang higher than the others. A face that had grown into the Reaper's Organic AI cores. A commander that had cheated death too many times to count. A commander that could stop a war from happening at the same time as brining a war against others. He held the most power and influence in the galaxy either through the people's admiration to him, or their deep seeded hatred towards him.

He was feared and loved. Something that Creation could relate too. It hoped for something, something that it hadn't ever hoped for before. Something had been denied to it for so long. It was, in itself, a living being, organic in nature, made from the bodies of his dying race, made from every single body and mind, every tissue and tendon. It still remembered when it felt its body come to life, the remaining creators looking in awe of its brilliance. It had watched them step inside of the chambers. It wasn't long before it felt their minds join with it.

It knew its destiny as the ship neared the final mass relay. It had already seen every outcome to the coming battle, but only two outcomes echoed between its two states. One led to salvation. The other led to immortality. The ship slowly disappeared as a blue wave enveloped it. It slowly cloaked itself with technology that couldn't be understood by any species.

* * *

The readouts rang out, the map ablaze with alerts from the Reaper swarm. Shepard watched them hit the final relay, their blips vanishing from view only momentarily before it hit in his space. His plan had been reworked and released among the other ships. The plan was innovative as it was bold. It had given the remaining captains free reign of interpretation. A plan that would remain random and stay illusive to the machine's minds.

The first ship came into view, a fury of lasers destroyed it quickly. The rubble led way to another Reaper that managed to ride behind its fallen comrade using it as a shield and a battering ram to drive a hole in their attacks. The attack had worked long enough to drive the attack off of the other Reapers that entered the system, but Shepard had already planned for this. The plan was unsure of the future with its many different effects to the different causes of the battle; the Reapers had broke through so now the plan changed quickly to another strategy.

A group of the heavier battleships kept the fire up on the wall of Reapers that flooded the system while the fighting ships began their bombardment runs on the ships. The plan worked spectacularly as quickly as it changed to another as the Reapers began to compensate against the plan. Shepard spent most of his time writing up the random plans and outcomes, his mind racing as he added every single plan together for every action or change of tactics or condition that the Reapers managed to generate. They weren't perfect, but he knew it was working better than a solid predictable plan.

A mall break in the flood surprised Shepard, but he focused on how they should approach the ones that had already made it through. Almost as quickly as the flood had entered, it started up again, again the plan was changed. The life of the fleet had been greatly underestimated by the programs making Shepard feel proud, but he never let it cross his mind beyond that point.

The ships continued to pour through the hole in their space. Shepard finished almost every eventuality of that may occur in the fight giving enough room for other captains and commanders to interpret on their own. He ran from the galaxy map up to Joker. He looked out the window to see the many shapes of the Reapers, shapes that he had never seen before. It was almost beautiful to watch their design, but he just needed to see the battle for real to get a stronger idea of what the Reapers had in store for him.

He ran back to the map, half the Reapers had entered the system already and they were managing to hold the line, but as expected, their rate that they were dying was slowly catching up to Shepard. The rate still dictated that they were going to die, but the odds from last night were much greater, as was the time.

Some of the ships had enacted his side plan to the main plan. They fired everything they had at the Reapers and quickly took off in different directions. Their only purpose was to buy the fleet more time to kill more with one less Reaper provoking them; the plan worked only briefly, but Shepard felt that each minute was worth the expense. A sudden change in the g-forces told Shepard that the Reapers had now taken note of the Normandy.

The crew worked furiously on their computers, their muscles working almost from memory as they patched the ship's power to each of the various sections of the ship. The power remained in the green as the draw of the ship began to rise. Shepard rewrote his plans that had been predicted by the Reapers so that they could possibly work again, the new plans were instantly sent as they were written.

The ship shook hard as the side of the CIC exploded in sparks. Shepard grabbed an extinguisher and instantly went to work putting it out.

"Engineering. How are you holding up?" Shepard asked after the fire was put out.

"The engine is running at maximum. It's getting a bit dodgy, but we should have it under control now." Ken yelled through the intercom.

"If it gets too bad, tell me and I'll come down to help. We need to keep this ship together." Shepard boomed.

"Aye Captain." Ken answered.

Beyond that initial burst of sparks and fire, the ship held together better than expected, more than Shepard had hoped for. The entire Reaper swarm now barreled down on the last defenders of Earth, their forces were now quickly falling apart. Shepard knew that it was now a matter of time before he was slaughtered by the burning rays of the Reapers cannons.

"You appear to be in some need of help Commander Shepard," came the sly voice of the turian councilor.

Shepard almost laughed as he saw a flood of new vessels come through, the defenders of the Citadel had moved to help the Earth against its siege. The human commander could barely believe his luck. The numbers that the fleet gave to Shepard were still not enough to halt their destruction, but it could buy the Earth some more time.

As fast as Shepard believed in hope, it was instantly taken away taken away. A large ship slowly materialized in front of him, stretching further than he could ever hope to see. Lasers and missiles smashed into its shields and were quickly dissipated. The ship was slow, but in relation to its size, it was an unstoppable force.

The many edges and ports on the side of the ship that was larger than the largest of stations flared to life, a fury of lights fired from it burning a hole through a series of ships that had been fighting around it, yet it didn't hit one Reaper ship.

"Commander Shepard…" A voice echoed through every ship in the fleet. "You have shown a resolve greater than the ones before you. You have shown me the power of your primitive species. You fight for more than glory. You fight for something more. I have seen every age of your race in arms against me while other cowered. I am here to save that which is strong. Your species has been chosen to be one of the greats, to become one of us, to live in immortality…" Creation addressed.

Shepard looked around the bridge. The voice sounded different from that of Sovereign and Harbinger, his voice was almost caring and sounded of emotion.

"What is your name?" Shepard asked, wondering if he simply spoke to be heard.

"I am everything from the beginning to the end. I am beyond both limits as much as I too had a beginning, but a beginning that was uncertain. I am the spark that creates life, and I am the forces that dictates its end. I am Creation, and I do what must be…" bellowed the low voice.

"Why must this be?" Shepard asked.

"I wish to save the strong and the worthy." Creation answered.

"But why? Why do you do this?" Shepard repeated.

"Because I wish to learn…"

The static from the interference stopped as quickly as Creation's weapons warmed up to fire again. Shepard looked out at the battlefield, lost in thought. The Reapers had left the ship alone and after the blast from Creation avoided hitting his ship, the gears began turning in his head. He knew what had to be done.


	96. Chapter 96: The Hallway of the Forgotten

The eeriness of the situation didn't end with the Normandy being spared from Creations initial pulse of power, but the Reapers that had been pursing the Normandy had ceased in following it. More so, it appeared that Creation's shields had been extended to cover the Normandy from being harmed. Shepard didn't want to risk having the ship ripped in half by exiting the shield which only left him one option.

He called up his team to the briefing room, something that he hadn't done since before the collector's base, and told them his plan. The crew stared at him confident through his entire speech, through every word.

"We are stuck inside of Creation's shields. If we try to leave, its shields will tear the ship apart…" Shepard explained.

"We're inside of his shields right?" Jacob asked. "Why don't we start opening fire and blow it away?"

"That's the thing. It is purposely allowing us to live, protecting us. If we antagonize it, it can easily wipe us out before be even have a chance to react." Shepard explained.

"So what do we do?" inquired Miranda. "I mean, we can't just sit here and watch as everyone is killed!"

"Of course not… EDI." The table in front of them hummed to life as a scaled down holographic image of Creation emerged. "I had EDI run scans on the ship and map out a detailed layout of its surface. Mordin tells me that the hull is made from a material that prevents interior scans, but we managed to get through on a small section of the ship. From what we can tell from this weak point in the hulls sensors, we can see that the ship is built like an actual ship hallways and entrances."

"You want us to go against that?" Jack questioned looking at the hologram.

"We have to. If we don't, then we just stand here and watch as the human race is turned into a paste and made into a Reaper." Jack cracked her knuckles in agreement.

"So how are we going to hit them? A blast from the main gun, give them hell from the inside?" Jack suggested.

"We are going to give it hell on the inside, but we are going to be going inside of the ship, not firing one weapon at it, we have to get the ship docked directly on its hull to be safe." Shepard spoke softly, looking at each of the crew's faces as his plan began to solidify in their eyes.

"But there's no place to dock the ship-" Miranda started.

"You want us to crash the ship into the hull of the Reaper?" Jacob questioned, almost in shock.

The crew stared at him, unbelieving at what he was suggesting. They would gladly go into battle with him, but to gladly smash the ship head first into the side of a super-sized dreadnaught, that was something else completely.

"So who's with me?" Shepard asked to give them a chance to decide if they were truly behind Shepard on this one.

Joker looked at the ground a huffed. He looked at his commander, a smile spreading across his mouth as he nodded in agreement. He limped closer to Shepard, trying to stand as straight as he could.

"You are going to need a suicidal pilot… but one that is good. You're lucky that I'm both." Joker laughed.

Tali had stepped forwards at the same time that Joker had stepped forward. She joined Shepard's side, only giving him a nod before taking his hand firmly. Grunt almost laughed as he stepped into the group.

"Now you are talking Shepard…" Grunt thrust his fist in front of his face, feeling the adrenaline yearn to be released.

Mordin stepped forward next, fiddling with his Omni-tool. He didn't say a word, but his smile confirmed his support. Jack looked at Miranda and smiled deviously. They both stepped forward at the same time, trying to be the first to join Shepard's side of the room. Garrus followed after Miranda, shaking his head.

"I was hoping you wouldn't drag me into another one of your suicide missions… I don't even know why I hang out with you…" Garrus teased as he walked past Shepard.

Thane and Samara walked forwards quietly, joining the troops, as did Kasumi who shook her head the entire time. She gave a quick glance to Shepard telling him that he was crazy, but he found it to be a look of her liking it. Jacob stood back with the remaining team, his arms crossed, thinking about the situation. He shrugged and walked into the group.

"Better than dying quietly."

Only Kal'Reegar stood where the group had left. He looked at Shepard from beneath his mask, almost wondering how crazy his newest captain actually was. He also shook his head as he walked into the group on the other side. He wondered whether they would all die in this pure suicidal attempt, but the more he thought about dying on the ship, the more felt like he was home. He even felt like death wouldn't be the worst way to on the ship.

The crew stood unified with Shepard, loyal to his actions, confident of his plans. Shepard quickly turned to the diagram of the ship and began ordering the crew to prepare the ship for their "docking procedure"

* * *

Creation could think faster than any computer in the universe, but it thought about one thing more than any of its other functions; Why was I the salvation of my species? It had devoted a millennia on the question, but it could find no answer to it from the lack of evidence. Its entire race had been wiped out by themselves through self-destructive nature, through bigotry of beliefs and the frivolous findings of financial fiends.

It baffled it beyond anything it had ever known. It was made from the organic compounds of life, but it was still infused to a computer AI brain. It knew of emotional responses in all of its wonder and confusion, but it still couldn't place a reasoning behind the hatred to their own kind. It had been created as an ark for its people's culture, but it had managed to question why those around it had died. Through a systematic experiment, it decided to find the reasons to why life wanted to destroy life so badly, but nothing made sense.

Scientifically, every experiment that was run, ran perfectly, but a variable that couldn't be controlled, always remained, a variable that drove life to kill life. At first it had thought that it was because of a deep-seated hatred to another race, but some fought other races completely unprovoked. The possibilities were endless, but it had found an agent that bent the rules in strange ways, a force that had managed to quell anger and suspicion, a force that had prevented unnecessary wars from taking place. It needed this agent to make a working test, it needed to know what he used to suede the masses to forgive instead of hate, to become friends instead of enemies.

Creation wondered whether it was wise to keep this being alive or to simply smash it under its power. It knew it could easily win against such an insignificant being, but even if it killed him… what would that cause? Nothing. He had already been the catalyst to the life forms in this galaxy and by killing him would only make the forces fight harder. Why?

Before Creation could think of any other possibilities, another section of its complicated cortex listened in on what Shepard was discussing with his crew. It wanted to stop him from breaching its hull, but something inside of it stopped the actions from ever taking place. It merely watched as the ship's shield matrixes were positioned higher on the nose of the ship, providing a compounded shield missile in front of the ship. Estimated survival on impact eighty-three percent. The numbers were still low. Creation watched it intently.

The engines blasted at full strength, aiming right towards the spot it had let him see, if it could have smiled, Creation would have done so at that moment. A sharp pain filled the ship as electronically impulses screamed of the breach in the ship, but it made no motion to stop the intruders. It wanted to talk to them in person, study them up close.

* * *

Smoke filled the bridge of the ship, fires spewing a gray smoke that hung in the air giving everything a haze. Shepard unhooked himself from his chair and grabbed a fire extinguisher and began putting out the fires and investigating he condition of the crew. Everyone in the bridge had survived, only a few concussions and bloodied faces. Similar responses came from the other parts of the ship.

Shepard coughed as the smoke still hung in the air, the filters still being overwhelmed by the amount of smoke. "Joker. EDI. Get the crew together and fix the ship to leave, we will be leaving immediately."

Joker looked at his arms and hands, surprised that he had broke a bone through the violent impact, but with the added armor and shields pushing in front of the ship, he knew that it would be a padded collision. He opened up the ship's diagnostic and began to coordinate the crew to the points needing repair.

"Nice way to land a drop team, eh commander?" Joker laughed.

"At least we are in, and there's nothing that can be used to shoot the ship…" Shepard rubbed his head.

Shepard's party disembarked the ship, stepping into the thick rubble and twisted steel. Grunt looked back at the ship and laughed at how clean the ship had poked its hole into the side of Creation. Shepard looked around the room, trying to find some way of knowing which way to get to the core of the computer or to the core of the element zero drive core. He looked at the wall and noticed a pulsing blue line that trailed down the hallway and around the turn.

He looked at Tali who had already guessed the question. She opened her Omni-tool and scanned the wall, revealing an energy source down the hall where the lights were directing them. Shepard turned to his crew, knowing what they would say to his statement for he too felt the eerie facts of all of this being a trap.

"The main power to the ship, from what our sensors are telling us, is down this hall, following the light." Shepard stated.

"Doesn't that just seem a little too convenient?" Garrus questioned.

"I know that it will be a trap. That's why I'm having you, Jack, Thane, Jacob, Miranda, Samara, and Grunt while I take Tali, Legion, Kal'Reegar, Kasumi, and Mordin. Stay in contact at all times, if enemies are nearby flare your radios once."

Garrus nodded and waved for the team to follow him down the opposite direction of the pulsing lights. Shepard and his team, cautiously walked down his hallway, keeping their guns raised and his biotic amp charged in case of emergencies. Garrus's team vanished around their corner just as the radio flared with his voice. Shepard answered, keeping the in-check.

Shepard made it a few more steps down the dark hallways that were only lit by the faint blur glow from a series of cracks in the walls, the light stream that guided them through the labyrinth and their flashlights. Shepard walked through an intersection in the hallway, a breeze or something disturbed the air down the hallway. He turned quickly, his flashlight illuminating the long, empty hallway. He turned slowly.

"Shepard…" the breeze whispered, what felt like right against his ear, He turned quickly around, but nothing had snuck up behind them.

"What is it Shepard?" Tali asked, noticing him turning abruptly.

"Do you hear that?" Shepard asked.

The crew stopped walking and opened their ears to every noise around them, but they heard nothing, nor had they heard anything before that. Shepard focused his mind on reality knowing that the de facto leader of the Reapers would be able to indoctrinate far quicker and far more efficiently than the new Reapers. He stepped cautiously around another turn, taking point.

The guiding light took a series of sharp turns down a maze of dark hallways. The silence was only broken by the crew around him breathing and the sounds of their boots and shoes against the hard walkways. The hallway turned sharply again. Shepard eased his way just enough around it to see a pack of standing creatures huddled together. He abruptly stopped and cupped his hand over the flashlight, holding his arm out to stop the crew.

He breathed slowly, his heart raced as he slowly let his eyes adjust to the faint blue light. They appeared to be husks, but none like Shepard had seen before. Their long appendages and their slender body was almost surreal to the situation. He knew that they knew they were there, yet they didn't move. The light pointed down the hallway that they were blocking.

Shepard stepped out from his hallway, uncapping his flashlight and letting it shine directly on the creatures that turned slowly to him. He raised his gun up, aiming it directly at the one that was closest to him. He stepped forward slowly, testing the creatures, wondering if they were hostile. Their mechanical eyes watched him as he stepped closer to them, yet they didn't move to attack. The crew followed in a single file line as Shepard slowly passed the first body. Shepard flared the radio to keep it silent. He was equally greeted with a flare that told him that Garrus had also ran into some of these creatures or something worse.

"Shepard…" the ship sighed again like a breeze.

Shepard froze again, making sure nothing moved around him, his eyes still transfixed to the shapes. Tali and the rest of the crew kept their guns on the creatures, but they showed no interest in them; they were all staring at Shepard. They managed to round the corner before Shepard flared his radio again, releasing the air that he had held in his lungs. Garrus answered back.

"Shepard, we just ran into a group of… I don't know what they were, but they just don't feel right. They didn't even acknowledge that we were beside them…" Garrus explained.

"We just walked past a group of them too… they looked at me as I walked past them… only me…" Shepard whispered.

"It must be Creation… I think he-"

An ear shattering screech filled the radio and the air around Shepard.

"Their attacking! Damn their fast! Shepard! Go before they attack you." gunfire is heard. "Hard to kill too…"

Shepard looked around the corner he had just taken, back where the creatures had been standing, they were gone. He turned back to his crew and raised his gun up, walking past them quickly, his walk quickly becoming a jog. His crew followed without question to his quickened pace. He rounded the next corner quickly, almost running headlong into one of the slender creatures, its face had opened into a disgusting hole filled with fangs and a piercing tongue.

Shepard fired a round directly into the hole of the creature's mouth causing an explosion of bluish liquid to pepper the ones behind it. Shepard quickly aimed to the other creatures, but when the first creature didn't fall he quickly looked back at it to see the hole that went straight through its head didn't impede its motor capabilities. It picked up speed as it ran towards him.

Tali jumped forward, unloading a round into the creatures chest with her shotgun. The other started firing too as the wall of creatures ran tightly down the hallway, stumbling over their fallen comrades. Hideous screams echoed all around them from the echoic walls of the ship. The team split up their focuses, both covering the others back. The flares from the gun created a strobe effect making the demonic creatures inch quickly to them in the blinking lights.

Screams and yells for cover and assistance were the only things that could be heard over the guttural yells that pierced through any sense of safety. A yell of pain filled the hallway, but it wasn't from anyone in that hallway, but from another somewhere else on the ship. Shepard listened to his radio, hoping to hear them declare victor with only a few cuts and scrapes, maybe an accident.

"Jacob! No!" Miranda could be heard screaming through the radio.

"I'm fine…" Jacob breathed in as he held back pain, Shepard could imagine him on the ground with a slash across his chest, his hand trying to hold back to blood, he brushed off the idea.

"No you're not… oh my god… Jacob no…" More gunfire and screaming could be heard through the other side.

Tali unloaded a final round into the last of their creatures, a pile surrounded both sides of them.

"Garrus? What's wrong? How is he?" Shepard asked quickly turning his radio transmitter on.

"I don't know Shepard… One of those things managed to gets its filthy claws under his armor. He's bleeding pretty bad…" Garrus stated grimly.

"I'm fine…" Jacob strained.

"Keep pressure on your wounds…" Miranda commanded.

"Just get me my gun and a few thermal clips… I can hold them back while you find out the secrets to this ship."

"Jacob. Stop being a hero." Garrus demanded.

"I'm not being a hero. You guys are. I want to buy you guys some time. If I come with you I'll just slow you down. After you blow this place, come pick me up." Jacob joked.

"That's not funny…" Miranda murmured.

"Jacob, If you can hear me, I want you to try making your way back to the ship. Miranda, I want you to help him get back.

"Yes commander." Miranda said coldly.

"Shepard I-" Jacob started.

"I don't want to hear it. I want you back on the ship to watch the fireworks." Shepard promised.

"You don't have to do this… I would give my life to help bring this place down." Jacob challenged.

"We don't need to give anymore lives to this ship. It has already killed so many." Shepard yelled.

"What is one more life?" Jacob questioned.

"I don't want to hear it! Miranda. Take him back to the ship!" Shepard demanded, the scars of Virmire opening up again.

"Shepard…" the ship whispered again.

"WHAT!" Shepard yelled out into the darkness, his crew looked at him curiously.

"What's wrong with you?" Tali asked, reaching her arm out to comfort him. He almost lashed out at her, but his mind quickly mended itself. He had slowly became aware that the voice had been calling his name the entire fight, it had been calling his name when he had stepped off of the ship, it had been calling his name since it had first appeared on the battlefield.

He put his hands against his head, focusing everything on the voice. It was quickly tuned out to a slight murmur. Shepard wiped the sweat from his forehead and walked down the body-strewn hallway, the soft-blue light flickered to the beat of the ship calling his name.


	97. Chapter 97: Falling Dissension

Creation could feel the presence of the intruders walking on it. It watched them carefully, attacking them to see their reactions, seeing how they tended to their wounded, introducing pathogens and testing the mental resistance of the main guinea pig. It repeated Shepard's name relentlessly and just at earshot to just him. He finally got an impulse from the human, but it found that Shepard quickly regained his composure, toning it out completely. More strains would have to be added. Hopefully they could survive long enough to see each other in the flesh though they were already in its flesh.

It opened more rooms and containers, the strange beasts ran out, being controlled by Creation, easily guiding them to their next dinner. It say everything as blips and stress levels, pieces of information running in a maze like mice being tested. It almost found enjoyment in the strains and torture of his living test subjects. It was almost refreshing.

* * *

Shepard ran through the halls of the ship, his breath thick in his helmet, yet his body never was worn down. He maintained a strong pace that his crew followed him in, their guns and flashlights scanning down each hallway to prevent ambushes. Only a few times did they ever fire a shot down a hall. Normally killing one of the fast paced creatures was enough to make the others right behind it trip, buying them enough time to keep running.

Tali turned around and just caught the dark shadow of a lunging creature. Her muscles tensed as her arms raised the shotgun, pupil's and eyes widened as the brain shot in the adrenaline to keep her alive, but she knew in that instant that she didn't have the speed to defend herself, yet she didn't falter. She just made out the strange shape of Shepard passing through her body and slamming into the creature, grabbing it by the neck, unloading a thermal clip of his heavy pistol into the creature's head.

Even though the head sat in pieces, the body continued to fight against Shepard's attack. Shepard smashed his fists into the sides of it, breaking the fragile bones that had decayed over the centuries of malnourishment. The slightly synthetic skin of the creature provided no defense against Shepard's blows, allowing at times his fists to break through the skin, showing his suit in a bluish synthetic blood. Tali watched him, almost terrified of the brutality that Shepard poured into the creature, but she quickly responded to another dark shape that had made it's way to Shepard's side.

She quickly jumped forward and fired a round into the creature's chest, it's body flailed to the hit, as the hammerhead rounds she had changed to sent it flying back into the darkness. The distant scurrying and shrieks from the beasts could be heard, quickly growing in numbers.

"We have to go Shepard! Now!" She turned to see that Shepard was standing, holding a device in his hand. He threw it onto the smashed body and grabbed Tali's hand. "What was that?"

"We have to run faster!" Shepard stated, his mind holding back the whispering echoes of insanity.

They rounded a corner just as a wave of heat, shot through the hallways. A sound of sizzling and heat hissed from the bulkheads from the explosion. Shepard turned back to the blackened hallway, a flood of bodies marked the victory. The commander turned away from the death and smoldering bodies, his team, out of breath and tired, looked at him proceed without even losing his breath. _Something must be on his mind…_ Tali thought. _Something must be driving him to this…_

Shepard brushed past his team, his mind filled with barriers and blocks to the whispering that had almost appeared to have quickened, like a thousand people all whispering his name consecutively, overlapping only slightly. He rubbed his head, the voices were getting to him, but he knew he had to keep strong. After checking over his tired team, he knew they had to rest, but he couldn't just sit there while this voice destroyed his grip on his nerves.

"You guys take a breather, I'm going to go look what's up ahead." Shepard muttered, turning his back to them, quickly walking down the dark hallway.

Tali raised her hand out to him. She only managed to say the beginning of his name before he disappeared from view.

"Something wrong. Not good." Mordin spoke up.

"This platform is reading elevated levels in Shepard Commander's speech. Something appears to be bothering him." Legion stated.

Kal'Reegar lowered his assault rifle on the ground to rest his legs. "Mordin. What do you know of Reaper indoctrination?"

"Only small studies and research. Nothing conclusive, but results always end in take over of the mind." Mordin answered.

"Do you think its getting to him?" Tali asked, immediately concerned.

"He is showing strange behavior, could be fighting the process… don't know how long he'll last. His appears to be slipping."

Footsteps made them turn quickly down the dark hallway, weapons drawn. Their flashlights illuminated the shape of Shepard whose face had become noticeably paler. He motioned for the others to stand, his mind in capable of making words as he kept the barriers in his mind up. He remembered what the Broker had told him and he kept the thoughts in mind.

They rose and joined him down the hall. Tali quickly paced up to him, trying to look into his eyes which he avoided.

"Shepard. What's wrong?" Tali asked.

Shepard turned to her quickly, the sweat caused his face to shimmer as the paleness caused it to look white. His eyes were almost afraid, yet they maintained his strong will. Tali had never seen him like this before; it frightened her. He struggled, but managed to tell her through what sounded like he was in pain.

"Voices… they won't stop… we have to hurry…" he closed his eyes as a surge of pain racked his body from the influences on his head. "I can't stand much more of this…"

He pressed his head against her helmet, feeling the slightly cool glass and metal soothe his headache. He stood tall again and began his jog again. Tali had slowly became aware of the increased noise, the humming that had grown as they ran farther into the ship.

"Shepard! This is Garrus. We are under heavy attack…"

* * *

Garrus watched as the creatures ran from the shadows, their arms equally being used as legs, running at them on all fours. Garrus fired into the group, concentrating his fire precisely to the points that appeared to give him a kill faster. Jack stepped just slightly in front of him, glowing blue. She launched a shockwave down the hall, clearing it temporarily of the creatures, but they could still be heard clawing their way down the corridor.

Garrus turned to catch one of them climbing along the ceiling towards him. He managed to swing his gun up, causing the creature's hands to explode sending it shrieking and flailing to the ground. He turned again just in time to see Jack get pounced by the creature. It slashed at her, but Jack managed to move out of the way of most of the attack. A blue fist sent the creature cracking into the ceiling, its bones pushed up into its head.

She slowly stood up, breathing hard, holding her shredded arm. She let go of her arm just long enough to send another concentrated punch into another jumping creature. Her fist went straight through it causing the creature to slide down her arm where it managed to slash her leg. She fell to her knee, the pain was unbelievable. She coughed, sending blood splattering in her helmet. She grabbed the seals and tore it off, taking a dep breath of the air.

She looked around, surprised that the ship contained air, but she credited that to keeping the creatures alive and strong. She stood strong again, the blood dripping from her right hand's finger tips, a small trickle of blood dripping from her lip. She stared angrily down the dark hall that she had been defending. Another jumped, but this time she caught the creatures end, pulverizing it with her biotics.

A creature appeared to lunge at Garrus, but it easily jumped over him, sending another slash across Jack's back; the creatures could smell her blood. They completely forgot about Garrus, Grunt Samara and Thane; their focus fell on Jack's weak body. Grunt jumped in front of Jack just as another creature lunged. It hit him square on his armored just breaking its face, but it still thrashed to get at the blood.

Garrus's team closely surrounded Jack in a guard. Jack would have lashed out at them, but she knew she had nothing left in her, not now. Looking back at her life, she welcomed the idea of death. Wiping the blood from her lip, she examined the blood. She could just make out small blue nanobots coursing through it. She cursed to herself as she sat right on her butt, burying her head in her legs. She let one tear drop before she stood up quickly, the blue biotic glow returned, but had grown over sevenfold. She pushed Garrus, Grunt, and Thane out of the way. She ran down the hallway thrashing and punching at the creatures sending shockwave after shockwave crippling down on the enemies.

Garrus quickly stood up from being pushed over. He reached out into the darkness where a blue flicker would blink ever once and awhile.

"Jack! What are you doing!" Garrus pleaded, memories of his team on Omega returned.

"I'm buying you more time! Get to that source and blow this place to hell! I'm already dead!" Jack managed to laugh at the end; Garrus had never heard her laugh, it scared him.

"Jack! You can't do this!" Garrus yelled.

Her voice was very distant and trailed by echoes. "Watch me!"

"She won't be able to hold herself together much longer. She is expending far too much energy. She is going to kill herself." Samara stated, staring in Jack's general direction. "I can feel it weakening…"

"Come one… we better not waste this opportunity…" Garrus conceded.

They quickly turned and ran down the hallway, following the trail of light to the inner depths of the ship. A sudden shake of the ship followed by a blue wave through the halls toward Garrus that Jack was no longer with them. He bowed his head as he ran. He felt sorry for her and he hated himself. He turned his radio on to radio Shepard, but he found that the biotic burst had disrupted the signal.

* * *

Shepard rounded another corner of the ship, his flashlight illuminating a central hallway that had a line of light that went down the one of the hallway, yet the light ended at the same hallway. Shepard couldn't hear anything down the other hallway. He opened the radio.

"Garrus? Do you read…" He pained to ask, his mind burned, but it was almost being soothed now since the voices had quit.

No answer.

"Garrus…?" Shepard waited, afraid of the silence.

Shepard looked back to when he had made his way to this spot. He had felt the ship shake slightly and that could have only been done by Garrus's team, but that could have only met one thing. Shepard turned the radio off, his sense of leadership began to fall through his fingertips. His other team had been killed off… _Why did I break the team apart? I should have kept them together, protected all of them! Why? Why can't you think of that? Remember the hallways. They are too small. If you brought your whole team then friendly fire would have been an issue._

He couldn't convince himself that he wasn't to blame. He turned down the last hallway with his entire concern put into his remaining team. More shrieking and clawing answered him down the hall. He raised his gun to greet the only thing that could keep his mind preoccupied.

* * *

Ashley's ship executed another quick barrel roll, dodging the brutal attacks of the Reapers. She had managed to live through this battle, but she knew she couldn't last forever. The strain on the ship had grown considerably. She had already watched excellent captains and admirals fall to the onslaught of attacks. She had watched as the Moreh was cut in two, killing Daro'Xen and her crew. Even the Neema had been destroyed by a two pronged Reaper attack. She had already prayed for Han'Gerrel who didn't make it out of the ship.

Another quick turn caused her to roll in her seat. The attacks were getting closer to her ship and she knew her time was coming to an end. She pulled a picture from her pocket and stared at it.

"I should have stayed with you Kaidan…" She folded the picture and placed it back in her pocket. "Divert power to the forward batteries. Prepare for a full attack on the Reapers."

The ship turned Sharply again, squaring itself to one of the large Reapers that had lost it's shields. The engines roared to maximum as the guns had been armed. She flicked her wrist to call to the attack a go. The laser pierced straight through the Reaper, at the same time it managed to swipe a laser across the side of her ship. She jumped out of her chair and took over the control of the ship as her dead helmsmen rolled out of his seat. She turned the ship sharply downwards into the path of the hole that her laser had made.

She sent a message to the crew to get into the escape pods and leave the ship as she armed the self-destruct. The damage to the ship had slowed it enough for the crew to escape at a safe distance. The ship broke through the hole of the Reaper, going deep into its core. The self destruct timed down.

Ashley lifted herself from the metal beam that had pinned her to the ground. She could just manage to open one of her eyes that wasn't blinded by the blood from her forehead. She could just make out the pulsing core of the Reaper through one of the holes in the ship. She smiled and laughed at the luck right before the ship exploded, taking the Reaper with it.

An agile ship quickly flew past the escape pods, a strong magnet connecting them, hauling them back to Earth where they would be rescued and sent back out on new ships that had been made. The crew told their story of their captains bravery to the generals on Earth who organized a funeral and the Medal of Honor for her service. They knew that if they lost this battle they would never be able to honor her sacrifice. They did it quickly yet respectfully. They kept the picture up as a memoriam to the people had had sacrificed themselves. The side rooms had already been filled with others banners.


	98. Chapter 98: Savior

Shepard trudged forwards down the last dark hallway, his mind was burning and his eyes were weak. The voices had returned, but were now intensified by a series of his crew's voices yelling his name. He knew it wasn't them because it matched the pattern of the ship too well. He kept moving though he didn't know how much longer his mind could keep his body going. The mental battle had drained him to almost pure exhaustion. Only once did Shepard find himself leaning against the wall, his lungs breathing hard from the attrition done to his body. He wanted to leave, to have his mind back, to hear silence, but the voices told him otherwise.

A walked straight into the final door, completely unaware that it existed through his fuzzy vision that dripped with tears. He stepped out of the way for Tali to hack the door, his body completely resting on the cold hard wall. He could have sworn that the voices were louder when he put his head against the wall, like every atom of the ships walls were talking. Tali stared at the beaten-but-not-out Shepard. She wished that she could share his pain, help him get through this.

She quickly hacked the door and gave her shoulder for Shepard to lean on. Shepard attempt to mutter a sense of satisfaction and thanks for her help, but it came out as a sigh. The room they walked into was dim, but shed enough light to draw the outlines of the room. It stretched for miles in either direction, taking the breath of the crew. Shepard closed his eyes to push back the pain of his headache gone rogue, but when he pushed back he heard no noises. The voices were gone.

He wanted to cry his relief out, which a few managed to from his exhausted eyes, but he used the break to quickly strengthen his body again. They turned around in the room to find a large central pillar, blipping silently. A smooth cylindrical section sat in the middle of the pillar with bases of rough and jagged edges. They pointed their lights at the pillar to find that the central area was made from glass or at least something similar.

They focused their eyes to the dim light, but a sudden blast of light that filled the room, burning away all shadows and darkness. The large vat that sat in the room had what appeared to be something living yet, it looked more dead than alive. The pale gray body, bulbous in shape was littered with cybernetic implants and attachments, far more than the implants that Saren had visible on his body. Its eyes glowed a soft blue as it looked down at its guests.

"Welcome Commander Shepard…" The voice boomed. "I'm glad that you could make it. I was afraid that my testing would have finished you before you got here, but I'm impressed…" Creation chimed almost joyously.

"You were _afraid_? Afraid that I wouldn't make it?" Shepard inquired, his voice still exhausted.

"You are such an excellent specimen… Life has taught me to always expect the unexpected, but you are and have been very unexpected. I have never seen an ant do so much damage to my fleet. Your people show great promise and therefore I must save them." Creation echoed.

"Save? You are planning to kill them all! Grind them down into your… paste, and throw them together as one of your projects." Shepard yelled, his body feeling a renewed vigor.

"Not one, but many. We wished that a race wouldn't fight back, too many unneeded deaths. So much lost material for such a pointless cause…"

"We are winning. Your fleet is just as weak as ours." Shepard boasted.

"You have done a series blow to our numbers, but only half of our fleet had been used. I am serving as the gateway to your destruction and your salvation…" The ship started into a soft hum that quickly grew louder. Bluish sparks danced on the ceiling and the walls. Tali and the rest of the crew looked back down the mile expansion of the ship to see the giant rings of a mass relay begin to spin.

"That's not-" Tali started.

"We created the relays. Creating a relay inside of me was easy. I am a portal to a new creation…" A bright screen opened up, showing that the fleet was being pushed back, a wall of Reapers blacking out the sky from Dark Space.

Shepard stared in defeat, the wall of ships were massive, unstoppable with the remaining forces that they had; they would have been lucky with just the remaining Reapers, but with every single Reaper now growing in numbers on their doorstep guaranteed their deaths. He felt his legs buckle slightly from the sight. He quickly lost his breath and his state of mind.

The human commander had been through so much and it almost felt like nothing. He had lost so much, but for what. He felt the inevitability begin to consume him. This wasn't just a think it through and a plan could save them, this time it was an eventuality. He simply didn't have enough forces to hold the darkness back. As he looked up, his head shook with anger. He knew everyone was going to die, but he wasn't going to make it easy on them. He slid a pack off of his back, slowly making his way towards the condescending pillar. He placed it at its base and activated his Omni-tool.

"What do you hope to accomplish?" Creation asked. "Killing me won't change your destiny. We live on through each other. When I die, another will rise. There is no end to our mission."

"You say you want to save and preserve life, but making them a lifeless ship that's sole purpose is to eradicate all life doesn't sound like saving. I will never stop fighting. I will take as many of you with me as I can before you or anybody else can stop me." He walked back to his crew, their heads were lowered.

He grabbed Tali's hand, squeezing it tightly, holding her close as he activated the bomb to destroy the ship. The rest of his crew stepped beside him and behind him, throwing in their support to what had to be done. A noise in the hallway stopped him from acting.

* * *

Garrus's team ran through the darkness of the ship's extensive hallway network. Garrus breathed hard, but the screams that echoed behind him was more than enough to keep his legs moving. Grunt had taken point, using his charge to push the creatures done that ran from in front of them. Thane fired his guns expertly past Grunt, causing the creature's ankles to explode causing them to fall helplessly to the ground where Grunt's boots finished them off.

A sudden turn with a twin glowing stream of light made Garrus briefly think about the situation.

"Damn it… Shepard's down this way!" Garrus hollered over the combination of heavy breathing and gun fire. Another turn in the final hallway brought them to the light at the end of the tunnel. He could see Shepard and rest of the crew standing in the middle of the room. As he was about to yell out, a creature fell from the ceiling, almost grabbing him. He fired a sniper round into its head at point blank range. The head instantly exploded sending a wave of pieces around his feet and a smear across his visor.

He could see Shepard turn and look down the hallway that they were still running down.

"Shepard!" Garrus called out.

Shepard dropped the detonator and ran to the door to the hallway, his gun drawn. It closed when he was halfway to the entrance. He could here the gunshots on the other side of the door and a series of screaming. He punched his hand against the door, sending a dull thud echoing in the large room.

"Tali hack the door. Now!" Shepard quickly ordered, but she had already started to decipher the codes to the door.

"Shepard… I'm getting a strange rea-" She started just as her Omni-tool swelled with light and exploded. Luckily since it was mostly the materials that made Chitikka, it simply heated her arm up. She blocked her eyes from the tool before she slowly eased her hand away from her eyes to see that her Omni-tool was no more.

"Shepard I can't do anything!" Tali panicked.

Shepard quickly pulled out his Omni-tool, but it exploded in the same way.

"Why are you doing this?" Shepard roared at the old machine.

"None of the specimen on the other side of that door is human. I require none of them for my plan." Creation blasted.

Shepard pounded his fist against the door again, placing his head against the hard outer surface of the door. He beat his helmet softly off of it before he pulled back quickly. He stared at the door for a few more seconds before a smile crept across his face. He turned back to Creation and smiled. The human commander walked over to the side of the tank where he had placed the explosives and grabbed the loop of the bag.

The team ran to the other side of the room when they figured out what he was up to. Shepard placed it against the door and tried his best to yell through the door.

"I'm going to blow the door. Step back." He took off to where his team was now set up.

Garrus could just faintly make out words from the other side of the door. He just made out the syllables for "Step back" or "Watch out". They both meant the same thing to him.

"Move up! Shepard's gonna blow the door!" Garrus yelled assuming Shepard's intentions correctly.

Samara erected a solid shield and walked forwards, pushing the creatures back while increasing the acceleration of the bullets leaving the field. The shield was thicker than the one she had made on the collector base and the complex multi-tasking tired her quickly, but she kept walking.

Shepard looked at the door, listening to the bullets and gunshots fade. He hoped it was them walking away from the door and not dying. He closed his eyes and focused on the timing that they were most likely traveling and tapped out the seconds with his hand, detonator in hand.

"3...2...1..." Shepard held his breath and pressed the button.

A wave of heat filled the room as the door blasted from its holder and catapulted down the hallway that Garrus and his team were still in. The differing light made it hard for Shepard to see if he had saved or killed his friends. A sudden shape jumped out from the shadows, rolling on the round just beyond the door.

"Garrus!" Tali yelled, almost too excited to be in the situation.

The turian didn't respond as he stared through his thermal scope, pinning and killing every strange shape that wasn't Grunt, Thane, and Samara. Grunt was next to emerge as a wall of blue energy flowed from the door with Samara in the middle. She quickly grabbed the rest of the bent door. She bent it just enough to block the hallway, but the sharp hands still reached through, flailing and reaching for any kind of meat.

They almost instantly stopped, making the ship go quiet again.

"You saved your friends at the price of saving the galaxy… Bold move…" Creation commented. "Not too wise since you will all be saved soon… You and your pitiful species will feel our pow-" It stopped mid sentence. "That's impossible…"

"Commander?" Joker's voice echoed over the working comms. There's something happening out in here…"

"What do you mean something?" Shepard asked, confused.

"Well…"

* * *

The rest of the Reaper ships had arrived into the Earth's solar system, their numbers blocked the stars and threatened to block the sun with their power, but they worked carefully to the earth, never forgetting to pick up any humans along the way. The rest of the ships were gathering up the destroyed Reaper ships and reprocessing them back into a strange red gel.

One Reaper approached the remains of Harbinger who had exploded right before the battles had started. It scanned the remains, but a strange energy source coming from the Reapers core made it halt and think about it, something a Reaper had never done before. It warmed up its lasers and fired at Harbinger's ship, burning whatever energy was hiding in it. The explosion from the core jumbled the readings only slightly, but a bright blue light shooting from the cloud of dust and debris sheared through the Reaper ship.

The other Reapers responded to the new threat, closing in on Harbingers body. A sweeping blue laser skipped across their shields when they had only made it halfway, but a series of super powered energy blasted from the cloud, shearing a large group of them in half. Their lasers fired into the dust in an attempt to hit the obscure foe, but the attacks still came out of it.

Another blast from the dust cloud carried some of the dust with it, causing a ring of dust and twisted metal to loop around the blast. The blast also cleared the dust from around the new fighter. A gleaming crystal ship came into view, glittering from the faint glow of the sun. No weapons could be visible on the hull but it also looked more like a living being than a ship.

The ship glowed faintly, quickly glowing brighter before the energy channeled to a single location on the front of the ship. The Reapers fired their lasers at the ship, but they bounced off of the smooth surface into another section of space. The crystal also appeared to grow with power, the more the Reapers fired at it, but it wasn't significant increases. A strange tongue filled the space ways and communication channels.

"Comsusae Forsinsia… Gloovemass Deastistarea…" A series of lasers blasts brought down another large amount of Reapers.

* * *

Shepard looked at the screen that Creation still had running. A bright crystalline ship came into view shearing the Reaper fleet apart. A voice suddenly filled the ship in a tongue that no one could understand.

"I have to do this myself…" Creation muttered to itself.

The ship quickly turned and set the strange crystalline in its cross hairs. The ship began to hum louder as a flood of light filled the bottom of the screen.

"No!" Shepard yelled.

The ship appeared to turn right when the words left his mouth.

"Gallafin… Hueman Shepard…" the voice spoke.

Creation's attention quickly focused on Shepard, almost looking angry on its deformed barely organic body.

"This experiment is over!" Creation roared.


	99. Chapter 99: Extinction

"What is that?" Shepard looked at Creation hopeful that the Reaper would answer him.

It didn't even register Shepard's existence anymore, yet it kept the screen up revealing the destruction that the crystalline ship was reaping on the Reapers. His hopes went through the roof and it grew when he saw the Reaper's laser attacks refract through the ship or deflect off of the sides. It destroyed Reapers with ease, but it appeared to still be running and keeping its distance from Creation.

The ship moved almost fluidly, its layers of crystalline hull bent and twisted like a serpent in space, yet its structure was rigid enough to simply run straight through a Reaper's ship without being damaged. Claw like arms stretched out from the sides of the ship and furthered the life-like qualities of the ship, growing into something… alive. Every laser attacked that refracted through the ship appeared to cause the ship to grow in size and power.

Eventually the ship had transformed into beast-like shape, claws, wings that somehow let it glide through the fabric of space, with a sharp end tail that it swung and stabbed through ships. It's glowing blue eyes fired the lasers at the further ships as it ravaged the Reapers. Creation fired another round at the ship, but it managed to just dodge it again. Creation hummed violently as an anger grew inside of it.

The short time that this strange ship had appeared from the core of a Reaper ship, it had already taken down the first wall of Reapers. Shepard could even see that a few Reapers managed to get behind Creation who had gained speed, flying past the large planet of Jupiter with ease.

The ship suddenly shook as heavy mass effect fueled nuclear shells impacted the shields of Creation's ship. The screen turned quickly, revealing that Creation was letting Shepard see what it saw. A giant juggernaught of a ship flew out from behind Ganymede, its weapons unloading its huge stockpiles of shield busting missiles and concentrated laser attacks. The screen flipped between the crystal ship that chased down the Reaper vessels or the assault on its own safety. It turned quickly back to the juggernaught and readied its cannons.

* * *

The Illusive Man watched as the behemoth of a ship that had dubbed itself Creation turn towards his ship. He quickly turned his in the other direction while keeping the missile batteries hot. The constant stream of missiles that launched from his ship rippled across the large ship's shields but they showed no signs of weakening, yet he continued to fire upon it. He felt an overwhelming urge to acquire this ship for his own, and with Shepard inside of it taking care of the core, all it would take would be some fire on the guns of the ship and he would possess the greatest technology in the galaxy.

He quickly tuned his ship as a laser blasted right in front of his glass control window. He turned his missile ports on the other side of the ship on and marked in a curve shot so that it would skip around his ship and double his firepower. The missile intensity doubled as those gun batteries came on line, the ship shook from the amount of guns firing from it.

Another laser just missed his ship as he turned it sharp again to throw the ship off. The Reapers that had hid behind Creation flew out to pursue the attacking ship. The Illusive Man took a long drag on his cigarette as he grabbed the crosshairs from the impossible large ship and spreading them out over the new ships that came into play. His missile swarm quickly made cheese out of their hulls.

He just grabbed the crosshairs to focus them back on Creation when the ship violently shook. He looked at the diagnostics of the ship and found that one of the Reapers that he had killed managed to fire a slightly weakened round into his ship. Though it was severely weakened, the laser still managed to pierce the shields and puncture through multiple levels of the ship.

It only took a swipe of a finger to quickly close off those sections of the ship, he didn't care if anyone was still in them. He grabbed the crosshairs again and turned them down to the ship that he was focusing on. He looked down briefly to bump the ashes from the end of his cigarette. When he looked back up, Creation was in line with his ship, the front glowing as the energy warmed up inside of it.

The cigarette fell from The Illusive Man's hand as he quickly tried to turn the ship and get out, but he knew it was too late. The three seconds it took for the laser to travel the distance between him and the ship was just enough time for him to remember the Broker's words. The glass screen he was standing at exploded as the laser hit the ship square, ripping through the entire ship causing it to fall in half. The ammo reserves snapped and pop causing the ship's hull to deteriorate more. It dissolved in on itself as the quad element cores enveloped each other taking the destruction inside of it.

A series of bright explosions cascaded out of the ship, the electric conduits snapping and the ship breaking into itself. A shriek of bending and snapping metal would have been heard, but the vacuum of space made the death quiet. Shepard stared at what had been The Illusive Man. A chunk of broken metal, slabs of steal, and a mixture of smoldering debris was the only thing that could be seen. Everyone was dead.

Almost matching the curiousness of Shepard, the screen quickly flipped back to the crystal ship that was still ravaging the Reaper ranks. The ship growled in anger, firing another concentrated round into its general direction, grazing the side of the ship. The final ordinary Reaper ship fell to the quick and powerful claws of the strange being that flew through space. It turned its attention on Creation, flying quickly to it. It's body serpentined through space with its claws outstretched. Shepard could almost imagine it as one of the Chinese dragons that were present during parades and parties.

The ship hummed quickly again as another round fired at the crystal. It swirled just around the beam, just as it fired a series of its powerful rays into the shields. The blue dotted patterns of the shield resisting shimmered brightly in the void of space. Another dark ray of energy poured from Creation's main gun. This time it managed to clip the back of its razor sharp tail, disintegrating it.

Shepard held his breath at the condition of the creature almost forgetting that he was on the ship that it was going to try to destroy. He looked around quickly to see if there was any way that he could bring the ship down from the inside, but the ship provided no clues to its weak spots. He quickly turned to his crew that were all still transfixed to the screen. When they caught that he had turned around, they broke their gaze and awaited orders.

"We need to blow this place…" Shepard could only say.

"It will be hard without all of they explosives since you used some of them on getting us through the door." Garrus added in.

"We need to think of something else… How much explosives do we have left?" Shepard asked.

Tali took the remaining explosives out from the old pack. And counted them.

"We have twelve charges." Tali answered.

"Good we-"

"From my calculations if we place charges around key points of the ship, we can cause the structural integrity of this room to give way." Mordin calculated, his hand against his chin in thought.

"Where Mordin!" Shepard asked, barely able to contain his hopeful excitement.

"I would guess at twenty key points around the room." Shepard's hopes fell.

"We have twelve charges… Where are we going to get eight more?" Shepard asked, his hand pressed against the faceplate of his helmet

"That was next on list. No idea. Still thinking." Mordin answered quickly.

Shepard sighed as he turned back to the screen to see that the crystal alien was just about to hit the shields of the ship. A sudden bright light broke the rest of the hope that Shepard had. A broken crystal creature phased through the shields, smashing into the side of the side, its remaining claw grabbing helplessly at the slippery hull. The eyes focused on the hull and fired into the Reaper ship with the almost the rest of its energy.

Shepard held on, just as a blue laser broke through the roof, crashing into the floor just a few feet from where he was standing. Creation nonchalantly turned its head in the tank to see the hole. It focused another blast of energy to finally eliminate the parasite that was still giving it problems when only half of it remained. A dark shape suddenly materialized in front of Shepard.

It was a static filled, barely recognizable playing of the Shadow Broker, his shape deformed by strange crystal growth's.

"Shep… I tried to end it my…lf. I see why they were wiped… now… When this ship explodes, it will cripple the sh-ship. You have to go to the bottom decks and plant your explosives at the…" the message broke with a heavy run of static. "the glowing pillar… you have to. You have to save everyone before it can-"

A sudden bright light on the screen and the sudden halt to the Broker's words told Shepard that the ship had been destroyed. He focused on the broken glittering dust in the screen just in time to see them explode violently on the Reaper leader's side. The explosion traveled down the hole that it had made, showering the closest thing to the hole with sharp crystal shards.

Shepard could feel them sting his skin as they pierced his suit and stopped inside of his skin. He fell to his knee as the final shower of crystals stopped. Tali tried to run to him, but Garrus held her back, waiting to see if the area was clear of anymore debris. She pushed out of his grip and ran to Shepard who breathed heavily as he fought the pain. Through his helmet, he looked down the hole that the laser had carved into the ship. He could just make out a faint orange glow down its dark interior. He grabbed the pack from Tali's shoulders.

"Hold them back. I need to finish this." Shepard shakily stood on his quaking legs.

"You can't do this Shepard! You are too weak. Let me do it!" Tali almost cried to him.

"I couldn't put you in that danger…" Shepard tried to break from her grip, but she held onto him firmly.

"I can't…" Tali was obviously crying now. "Not again… We'll go together." She wrapped her arms around him, holding him close, holding him strong.

"Fine…" Shepard conceded. He turned to the rest of his crew. "Hold them back. I'll be back before you know it." Shepard smiled, but it was merely an instinctual reaction to make himself feel better, but he felt an ending at the bottom of this hole. Something was going to end, but he couldn't feel which would end.

Tali held him up on her shoulder as they descended into the dark hole. The laser had wiped out the circuits to the electronics causing only a blanket of darkness to surround them with the only relief being in their flashlights and the faint glow of the "orange pillar".

Creation had already felt the intruders walking further into its body. It turned back to the rest of the "parasites" that had broken into it. The creatures instantly started picking at the door again. The remaining doors in the room opened up causing a flood of shrieks and yells to fill the large room. They backed up to the hole that Shepard had dropped down into and tightened their formation.

Quick dark shadows lunged from the dark holes in the walls, sliding on the floor and quickly running towards them. The thundering sound of gunfire echoed in the room as the team began to unload into the swarm of creatures, their claws flashing in the faint lights while Creation closed itself off from their view with a hard protective armor.

Samara grabbed one of the creatures with her biotics and tore it across the room, using it as a battering ram against the other creatures, knocking over a whole line of them, breaking the first creature. Mordin sent a flood of heat energy into the skin of the foes causing them to burst into flames while Kasumi used her cloak to fade behind the creatures who got too close, taking their heads as she went.

Grunt watched as his heavy shotgun vaporized a creature's chest that had managed to get into a point blank range of him. He laughed when the arms and head hit at a different time that the body had hit. Garrus and Legion stood on the rubble that had fallen beside the hole, using the slight vantage point to begin picking off the swarm with their snipers. The swarm continued to grow, a never ending flood of them, continuously running out of the holes in the walls. Grunt fought hard, but even he was beginning to feel pressured by the sheer overwhelming numbers of the creatures.

Kal'Reegar tried to maintain his composure, but he too began to feel the strain of the odds. At one point, he caught himself holding his trigger down, just firing into the solid wall of creatures. He pulled an anti-personnel grenade and tossed it into the horde. A moment later a bubble of the zombies flew through the air, arms, legs, and bits of flesh. Mordin could now catch multiple of the creatures on fire because of their close proximity.

Somehow they managed to hold the line, but the sense of dying was now almost too real for all of them, but they listened to what Shepard had said, their only voice of reason in this time of crisis. They would rather die trying than die in vain.


	100. Chapter 100: Into the Darkness

Creation scanned the space around it, a fury that it had never known, boiling through the core and through the hull to the farthest reaches of its hull. All of its work had been lost, generation after generations of life had been lost because of a fickle race of vermin. All of its processing power became encapsulated with the hatred of these species, but it knew it had to still harvest them, nothing stood in its way now. She ship's lights turned from their bluish flicker to a hot red as the ship's engines fired into overdrive, the ship quickly gaining speed heading to the final defenders of Earth who ahd taken orbit around Earth.

Garrus, Mordin, Thane, Grunt, Samara, Kal'Reegar, Mordin, Kasumi, and Legion stood amid a thick of shrieking bodies. A pile of thermal clips grew at their feet, telling them their reserves were running low. Samara turned a bright sapphire blue creating a large enveloping blue bubble around their location, the shrieking creatures beating and climbing on its exterior. It was only to buy them more time as they waited for Shepard to finish the job. How they were going to escape was something unknown to any of them.

Shepard and Tali worked their way through the darkness, Shepard gaining his footing and his strength to limp on his own down the hole. Tali kept part of his weight on her shoulder. They continued to dive deeper into the ship, the faint orange glow growing in intensity, but its source was still unknown. The surrounding hallways had collapsed, sealing the odds of any of the creatures from sneaking up on them, but what stood at the bottom of the burnt in hole scared them more.

Tali and Shepard hit the final landing, Shepard falling against the hard wall to hold himself up. He inched his head slowly around the side of the wall to see the light was being bent through a cylindrical glass case. He scanned the room for any guards, but it was safe. Tali helped him into the room so that they could try to get a better look inside of the "orange pillar". Shepard softly lowered himself to the ground to get his breath. He also took the times to wrap the holes in his suit with a suit sealing wrap.

"Damn…" Shepard muttered, feeling the crystal shards still scratching his skin from inside the suit.

Tali looked at him, a burning concern melted through her eyes. She wanted to give him comfort and hold him, take time to comfort him, but the sound of the gunfire above reminded her of her friends and that she had to keep Shepard motivated to move and not relax. She pressed her helmeted head against the thick glass to try to get a better look at the glowing object, but it was still too heavily distorted, but she could have sworn it moved to her presence.

"Come on Shepard…" she grunted as she lifted him back to his feet.

He grabbed his shotgun and pressed it against the glass, firing point blank into the surface. The outer covering that he had shot broke, but the fortified glass held on the rest of the tube. He didn't he even look inside of the container to see what he was blowing up; he merely tossed the bag of explosives inside of the container and primed the trigger. He kept his back to the glowing object, but his curiosity began to pick at his mind.

"Keelah…" Tali just made audible, her body turned towards the object, looking inside of the tank.

Shepard turned around and almost lost his breath when he saw the source of the orange light. A VI of strange dimensions, almost human in shape stood in front of him. At first he had thought it was human, but the longer he looked at the hologram the more he noticed slight differences. It stared at him, knowingly, with a look that not an ordinary VI would have. Shepard even believed it to be an AI, but the human like qualities were still making him at a loss for words.

"Greetings Commander John Shepard. We are glad you could make it this far…" The VI started.

"What are you?" Shepard stuttered, amazed at what he was seeing.

"I am what you see above, well, I am what was supposed to have lived. This is what I was before I became Creation as you have seen." The voice answered monotonically.

"You were… human?" Shepard couldn't believe he could ask that question to a Reaper.

"No… I am a completely different species, but your species has shown the most promise for our return. We wanted immortality, to transverse to the end of time, to see the end, but something happened within our empire…" The voice trailed. "We were the owners of all the stars and galaxies, but something happened, a disease, yet it wasn't conventional, it wasn't real… the disease of fear, the disease of panic. We began to tear ourselves apart from suspicion and distrust. Eventually, we were narrowed down to this very galaxy, the final salvation of our people. The greatest minds came together to save our species. I was one of them."

Shepard and Tali stared awestruck as the story began to unfold. Shepard's hand kept a firm grip on the detonator, but he no longer felt the power to press it.

"We decided to build a ship, a ship made from the most durable resource available to us, one that could bend mass effect fields, one that could resist wears of environment, evolve, and heal. We mentioned this to our leaders, well, what was left of our leaders. The plan was radical and cruel, but the only thing we had left. It began as a promise of safety, ports and labs set up throughout the galaxy. Our people flocked to these salvations and we greeted them by shoving them into capsules and forging them into our salvation."

Disgust and hate poured across Shepard's face.

"How could you do that to your own people!" he yelled, his strength returned almost instantly, but the crystal shards cut into his skin just enough to tell him he had a limit.

"I was head of the project, the scientist to suggest the idea." the VI scientist continued. "I never had a heart for life, but I knew it was resilient and that with the right variables, we could revive our people, but something happened… The AI malfunctioned. It consumed our project quickly, destroying the scientists minds that had been used as an advanced VI interface to the AI core. I saved my mind to the core, setting up blocks and firewalls to prevent the AI from getting me, but it had my body and the most powerful ship our race had ever built at its command. The only restriction it had was to generate life and re-run the experiment until we were re-made."

"You killed your entire people to save your people?" Tali asked.

The orange eyes darted to her, almost hurt.

"Yes… we thought the introduction of our DNA into the mix of the primitive life of the surrounding key worlds, we could regenerate our lives… but life is more fickle then we imagined. I may have been locked on this ship, but I still had enough power to see what this ship saw which allowed me to see the life forms that had been created from our involvement. They were beautiful and successful. They thrived and lived in harmony, a sight that I had never truly experienced. This ship, on the other hand, had a different idea. It gained a creator-complex, it wanted power over the life it created. Preserve the strongest life became its programming, but preserving became converting…"

"You don't sound like you enjoy being on this ship when this happens…" Tali answered.

"I've hated every second of it. I've watched as life was wiped out in intervals, each showing promise to start a better life then our life. I am a simple VI of the long lost scientist, but I've still kept my mind in check through the years. I am the main core of the ship, yet I don't hold any power over the main processes. I am, what you would call, the subconscious level. I'm vital, but no one ever witnesses my struggles."

Shepard held pity and hate for the VI of an ancient scientist. He knew that no one should have been put through the torture that he had been through, at the same time he hated what the scientist had done to his people. The pack of explosives that sat at the VI's feet seemed like a win-win situation, but Shepard had to ask.

"Do you want to die?" Shepard asked respectfully, motioning towards the pack.

The VI looked at Shepard, face unchanged as it stared into his eyes. It glanced down at the pack, almost at thought of the proposition. It was still only a VI with limited learning capabilities, but it had thought about this question ever since it had been trapped on the ship. It glanced back at Shepard, nodding slightly.

"I would like that… It would be the death of our people, our culture, but…" it nodded more forcefully. "It has to be done…"

Tali and Shepard stared at the VI as it fuzzed and wisped into a progression of the scientists image. It had been a bright looking young scientist first, but when the image realigned, it had became an old man barely holding his own. The voice had also became raspy and restricted.

"I have waited so long for this…"

Shepard primed the explosives and turned toward the door, Tali following close by in case his legs buckled.

"And Commander Shepard!" Shepard turned to the calling VI that had transformed back into its youth. "Thank you…"

* * *

Shepard regained enough of his strength when the adrenaline from just planting an armed bomb began to echo in his mind. He climbed into the thick of a battle. Samara had fallen to her knee, the shield weakening quickly. The sweat dripped from her forehead as she struggled to hold it. Shepard made himself known so that she knew that they could begin to move out, but she had stood for just a second before she fell back to her knee. A look of anger burned through her eyes as she hated herself for the weakness. She pulled herself back up and focused the shield to the door that had been pried up by the creatures.

A sudden flare and a rippling explosion told Shepard that Samara had used the shield as a battering ram to smash a way through the wall of husks to the door. Samara tried to stand again, but she again fell, her legs barely able to hold their own.

"Grunt! Grab Samara! We are leaving now!" Shepard yelled, running with his own weak legs towards the door down a hallway of quickly encroaching monsters.

From Grunt's back, Samara channeled her remaining energy and power to launch weaker waves down the hallway to keep it open for them to continue. Her eyes slowly began to droop as she began pressing her powers past their limit, the same limit that Jack had passed before her rage had destroyed a section of the ship. With the remaining crew together, they had enough concentrated fire to keep their pace while they ran through the dark hallways.

Suddenly the ship shook violently, the cracks in the sides of the hallways exploded with light and fire as the ship began to violently die. The creature that had taken over the ship, a creature that had wanted life fought to control the ship, but none of its vital processes were working. The fires burned up through the grating on the floor causing the tank to heat up. The creature inside shrieked, causing an ear shattering shriek to echo over the entire ship.

The team fell over from the disorienting shatter of noise that echoed from the ship. Shepard managed to get back to his feet, stumbling only slightly, grabbing Tali's arms, lifting he quickly to her feet, as the rest of the crew hurried down the exploding passage ways. The creatures were still in hot pursuit of them, but the collapsing hallway managed to kill a few at the same time that it began putting Shepard and the team at risk of being crushed inside of the ship.

"Mordin! Tell Joker to get the ship ready!" Shepard yelled as they slid around another corner.

Mordin opened his Omni-tool and opened a message to the Normandy. His quick fingers quickly gave a simplified version of the message to Joker. An immediate reply came through that the ship was ready to go, but it was still stuck inside of the ship. From what Joker claimed, the hull of the ship had resealed itself around the tip of the Normandy, almost welding it to the ship.

"Commander! Problem with ship. Hull through entry point has resealed itself. Normandy is stuck!" Mordin yelled up to Shepard who cursed under his breath.

They rounded a corner to the sight of the Normandy protruding from the side of the ship. The human commander waved the crew members past him to the loading door. Grunt was last in the line, Samara fading in and out of consciousness. She muttered something as she passed Shepard, but he couldn't hear what she had wanted to say. Tali stood at Shepard's side as he aimed his gun at the hull of the ship to test its strength.

He fired a round into the hull and watched it ricochet off, barely leaving a dent. He looked at the Normandy and felt a wave of luck wash over him, but the bad luck he was facing now even dwarfed the wave of good luck. Grunt had stopped part way to the ship, dropping Samara down on the far wall, turning his head to Shepard. Before he could say anything Shepard had already responded.

"What's wrong?" Shepard asked, running to him.

"She wishes to speak with you commander…" Grunt answered him before he took off to the Normandy.

The ship shook as another violent explosion rattled the ship. Shepard lifted her head up so that she could look at him without much effort. She grabbed at her helmet, pulling off and taking in the dirty air that had filled the ship. Her eyes barely stayed open as she began to speak to him.

"I overheard the condition of the ship… you need me to get the ship out of its trap… Let it be my last act of justice…" Samara managed to say in a whisper.

Shepard stared at her, his eyes broken with tears. "We can't leave you…"

"You must… it's the only way…" She retorted with more force.

"I'm not going to leave you." Shepard attempted to lift her up, but a sudden blast of biotic energy sent him tumbling to the ground. Samara pushed herself back up on the wall as Tali ran to Shepard who had pushed himself up on his arms, staring at Samara.

Shepard stood back up and pulled his helmet off, revealing his tired and pale face. He walked over to Samara who had raised her arm up to launch another biotic push on him, but she saw by the look in his eyes that he had no intentions of saving her again. He bent down to her side, wrapping his arms around her, hugging her tightly. Samara felt the barriers she had inside of her mind begin to fade as she felt his strength comfort her soul.

She barely noticed the tear that slid down her dust covered face, leaving a dark streak down her face. She let the emotion enter her once to feel what she had never felt before in her life. She felt the warmth of it warm her body and free her mind. It broke her apart at the same time that it rebuilt her. She felt her lungs give way into a heavy sob as she felt fear and happiness. She realigned the barriers, but the combination of the loving warmth and the dull cold remained in her body. She pushed him away.

"Go Shepard…"

Shepard grabbed Tali's arm and ran to the door of the Normandy. The deterioration of the ship had increased sending a rippling shockwave through the room. Samara raised her hand to block the dust as the bulkhead crinkled as the ship's mass effect cores began to implode on itself. Tali ran inside of the ship as Shepard looked back one last time at the crew member that he had left behind. A small nod confirmed his acceptance of her death and her sacrifice for the crew. She nodded in acknowledgement.

The decontamination chamber shook as the ship around them began to rip itself apart, threatening to take the Normandy with it. The doors to the ship opened. Shepard immediately yelled up to Joker.

"Full reverse! Now!"

"We can try, but we are still stuck!"

"Do it now!"

The engines hummed to life and began to increase in power. Tali quickly ran to the elevator to help divert the power to the engines. Shepard ran up to Joker's seat and looked out the window to see Samara glowing with power. Her eyes glowed brilliantly as she floated up with the last power of her biotics. She channeled the force of her blast to the edges of the ship and launched it at full force.

A loud crash and crack followed by a grinding told Shepard she had freed the ship. He smiled to himself as the large ship faded from view, but the small dark shape that fell to the ground inside of the opening broke his happiness. He lowered his head in respect and out of shame for not being able to think of a better way of escaping.

His mind quickly became aware that the chain reaction explosion that was taking the ship was taking it too quickly. At the rate it was falling apart, they wouldn't be able to clear the blast before it consumed the Normandy.

"Can you get the ship to go faster?" Shepard yelled down to engineering.

"We are giving her everything we've got Captain but-" Ken started.

"How much more do you need?" came Tali's voice after a slight scuffle on the microphone.

"Everything we've got. Keep the shields strong to hold back small debris, this is going to be close!"

The speed of the ship increased, but the escape distance still wasn't going to be achieved in time. Mordin had stopped at the helm too, staring at the rate of deterioration of the ship and the rate of acceleration.

"Increase the shields to maximum. Escapes pods will be necessary." Mordin looked at Shepard before he made his way to the side of one of the escape pods, holding onto the straps and anything else to hold him down.

"Get ready to give the abandon ship command…" Shepard sighed to Joker. "Tali. Divert all power to the shields."

"Aren't we trying to get away from the explosion?" Tali asked.

"We aren't going to make it…" Shepard spoke into the microphone.

Silence and a decrease in speed was the only thing that answered him. He walked back to the side of the ship, strapping himself inside of the side seat. Bursts of light and energy cracked through the sides of the ship as it churned and broke. Shepard could still hear the shrieking inside of his head, but it was a faint tone now. A sudden bright light blinded him. An eerie smoothness filled the Normandy along with a shock of silence.

Just as everything became quiet and smooth, the ship violently shook as it was catapulted through space at an increased speed. Shepard's head hit the console, sending him out cold.

Moments passed before Shepard could open his eyes, his head blurred. He was surprised to find that he still had a body and that he was still on the Normandy, but he found that he was on the floor. He pushed himself back up to see that the Normandy was on fire. Pieces of the hull were also gone, but the shields managed to keep the gravity on in the ship. Shepard rose to see that Joker was slumped over his console. He stumbled to him, resting his hand on his back. Joker stirred and looked back at him, just as amazed as Shepard was when he woke up.

"How's the ship?" Shepard asked.

Joker gathered his thoughts and turned the diagnostics of the ship on to see red across all scans with a blinking red caution. He quickly grabbed the microphone.

"Abandon ship! All crew members abandon ship!" Joker rose to his feet, running to his escape pod, surprised that his legs weren't broken.

"We need to go Shepard!" Joker yelled, throwing his arm out to help him into the escape pod. Shepard looked back at the scans to see that engineering was in a critical state. He took off towards the elevator and pressed the engineering deck.

The elevator made it halfway before the cable snapped causing it to fall the last couple of feet. He slid his fingers into the cracks of the elevator, prying them open with the last bit of strength he had. The engineering deck was a fiery and smoky mess. Shepard climbed out of the broken elevator and squeezed himself through the slightly open doors that had lost their ability to open from the damage.

The first thing Shepard saw when he ran inside of the engineering deck was the legs of a dead crew member. His brain almost collapsed from the panic of the sight, but a thin figure ran out from the side of the room, smashing in the final sealing measures of the core. Shepard grabbed her arm and pulled at her.

"We have to go!" Shepard yelled at Tali.

"I need to seal the ship's core!"

"You don't have time! The ship's coming apart! We need to go now!" Shepard yelled pulling on her arm. She turned and looked at him, the familiar faint glow of her eyes could be seen through the dark tint of her visor. They eyes understood the urgency, but memories clashed with the present. She felt that if she didn't she would lose him again.

"Tali! We have to go now!" Shepard yelled.

She closed her eyes and turned to Shepard, following him to the last engineering escape pod. They ran down the hall that snapped and cracked with sparks and fire. The ship's gravity drive failed, sending the gravity into the other side of the ship making Shepard and Tali fall against the wall. They quickly stood and ran along the wall to the open hatch of the escape pod.

The gravity quit working and they floated into the air, no way of moving. Shepard pushed Tali to the escape pod's doors where she latched on. She turned back to Shepard who hopelessly floated backwards into the fiery stream that had erupted from the ship's oxygen tanks. She pulled the pistol from her side and loaded another round inside of it and fired it out. A cord launched at Shepard.

He managed to grab a hold of it just as the fuel tanks ruptured. He rode the force of the explosion and the force of Tali's pull to the escape pod. He squeezed through the hole perfectly, but Tali had been left on the outer barrier around the door. The explosion launched her against the side of the barrier, smashing the back of her head against the wall. She limply floated through the air.

Shepard pushed himself past the open seats, grabbing her arm, pulling her into the escape pod and quickly pressing the escape button. A g-force shift pushed them against the side of the ship as it catapulted out of the ending Normandy. Tali stirred in his hands just in time to look up at him and smile with her eyes.

A sudden rumble of the pod meant the Normandy's core had collapsed in on itself. Shepard grabbed a spare helmet from the rack, tore his helmet off, and slid the new one over it. He was just about to reassure Tali when something impacted the escape pod. Shepard watched as the structural integrity of the pod began to fell, the sides slowly falling apart revealing the darkness of space.

The sides of the pod fell from him, making them float in the darkness of space, unprotected. Shepard held Tali close as they floated into space.

"Thank you…" Tali whispered to him.

Shepard looked down at her just as a piece of the Normandy hit him in the back of the head cracking the oxygen tubes on his suit. He almost instantly began to feel the restrictions on his breath as the air escaped. He let go of Tali to grab the broken air tubes on his helmet. He looked at Tali float beside him, she was out cold. He felt the constriction of darkness begin to collapse his vision. He could only watch as the darkness took his eyes before he felt his body go limp. His mind fell into the recess that it had just escaped, it fell into the darkness.


	101. Epilogue

Faint voices and eerie muttering filled her clouded mind as she slowly felt her consciousness restart. She opened her eyes to find herself in a bright white room. It was morning. She could feel all of her extremities and limbs, but she wasn't sure of everything. She stubbornly rose up, holding her head as a flush of pain filled it. She looked around the room to see that she was in a hospital.

Tali's mind quickly began to replay, her heart quickened as she remembered the destruction of the Normandy and the escape pod. She remembered Shepard floating away from her into space, a cloud of air escaping around his head. Her heart raced even more. She jumped from the bed and ran outside of the room. She looked around the crowed hospital hallway, her eyes looking for the man that she hoped with her whole heart to see.

She ran down the hall to the large central lobby where a series of coffins stood, marked Normandy. Tali's eyes scanned the names of each one, racing and missing beats the longer she scanned through them. His name wasn't on any of the coffins. She rose almost happy, but she heard his name mentioned outside. She ran to the large window to see that a funeral procession marched up to a large podium, decorations and mourning adorned the coffin. She opened the door and wrestled past a few of the surrounding doctors that tried to get her back to bed.

Tears poured from her broken eyes as her heart began to break from the strain. She rounded the corner to see the man standing at the podium, holding her gaze. His soft eyes and gentle smile spoke words to her heart. She almost collapsed as tears began to drip from her face and her legs quake with weakness. She fell to her knees, staring up at Commander Shepard.

He finished his speech about the loss of Ashley Williams and her bravery. Before he solemnly walked down the steps and to her side. He lifted her up and held her close and tight.

"What happened? I saw you-" She broke with a crack of her feelings.

"They discovered me just in time… A rescue crew managed to get to us before any major problems could develop. I had collapsed and was beginning to die, but they managed to get me into a room and restart my lungs." She could feel that even Shepard was beginning to break down with happiness.

She held him tighter, knowing how close she had come to losing him.

"You need to get back to bed and rest… that concussion was pretty bad…" Shepard started guiding her back to the hospital.

Tali couldn't even manage to say anything anymore through the happiness she was feeling. She could only laugh and cry at the same time. She barely noticed that they had already made it to her room and he was tucking her back into the bed. He sat down in the chair next to her, holding tightly onto her hand. They both smiled at each other.

"When you get better… we are going home…" Shepard promised, taking her hand in both of his.

Tali quickly became aware of how tired she was. It wasn't long before she fell asleep allowing Shepard to return to the funerals that he had to speak for still. He massaged his bandaged arm and shoulder that was stuck in a sling, but it wasn't broken. He turned off the lights and looked back at the gently breathing quarian laying in the bed.

"I love you…"

* * *

This is the point where I thank everyone for this story. I would like to thank Bioware for allowing me to use their story up to this point as a way for me to give some possible outcomes and stuff like that. I would also like to give thanks to the people who have helped me along the way.

Verge Arterius

Sarge

Tim94

Inverness

Super Saiyan 3 Vegeta

Nim istar

Sen Hai

Beharned1

Oerlikom

Tetris566

SO58

Smither

Animus Ferrus

Kmaczoro

The stone tiger

Lyger zero 402

I'm solo

Zadok

Blazar

Candle in the Night

Tantalus91

Dio is Satan

TK Dude

Tobbs

Mikethor007

Death Striker0

Mozer121

Savakka1

Dr. Tran

Der_rabe82

ElTee

Wisekill1

JDog2pt0

XT Vengeance

*I'm sorry if I forgot your name on this already long list.*

More thanks goes to the people who influenced me to write. FsDxRage and Sorrow.


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